Collaborative Art: Telling the Gun Lake Tribal Community's Story
By Emily Marshall, NCIDQ, Interior Design Director, HBG Design
When people think about hospitality design, they often think about beautiful interiors, luxurious finishes, or memorable guest experiences. While those elements are certainly important, the projects that stay with me long after they're complete are the ones that become something more.
The new Community Block Wall at Gun Lake Casino Resort is one of those projects.
As Lead Interior Designer for the Gun Lake Resort expansion, I had the privilege of working alongside the Gun Lake Tribe throughout the design of the resort's public spaces. From the beginning, our goal was to create an environment that felt distinctly connected to the art and culture of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians. Every material, pattern, artwork, and story was considered as part of that larger vision.
But one opportunity stood apart.
Not simply creating a place that tells the Tribe's story—but creating a place where the Tribe could tell its own story.
More Than an Art Installation
Working closely with the Gun Lake Tribe's Tribal Historic Preservation Office and Citizen & Community Experience teams, HBG Design helped develop the concept for what would become the Community Block Wall.
Rather than commissioning a single artist to create a finished piece, the vision became something much more personal.
Each handcrafted block represents a member of the Tribal community. Together they showcase photographs, artwork, meaningful imagery, and personal expressions contributed by Tribal citizens themselves. As individual pieces come together, they create a larger story—one that continues to grow with every new contribution.
It's a living work of art.
Unlike a traditional installation that remains unchanged over time, this wall is designed to evolve alongside the community it represents. New generations will continue adding their own stories, ensuring that the artwork remains as dynamic as the Tribe itself.
Designing for Community Participation
One of the greatest privileges of this project was helping design something that invited participation instead of simply observation.
Hospitality spaces often feature beautiful artwork that guests admire as they move through a lobby. This project encourages something different.
It creates moments of conversation.
Moments of recognition.
Moments where Tribal members can point to a block and say, "That's my family's story."
Those moments transform a space from simply being beautiful into being deeply meaningful.
The Power of Collaboration
Projects like this only happen through genuine collaboration.
The Community Block Wall reflects the vision, dedication, and cultural stewardship of the Gun Lake Tribe, particularly the Tribal Historic Preservation Office's Archives & Collections Program, whose mission is to preserve and share the rich history and traditions of the Pottawatomi people.
HBG Design's role was not to tell that story for the Tribe.
It was to help create the framework where those stories could be shared authentically.
A Living Legacy
Seeing the Community Block Wall unveiled in the Gun Lake Resort lobby was an incredibly rewarding moment—not because a design was complete, but because a new tradition was beginning.
Years from now, more blocks will be added.
More stories will be shared.
Children will grow up seeing their families represented alongside generations before them.
Visitors will experience not only an extraordinary resort, but also a living expression of the community that calls this place home.
As designers, we hope every project creates a lasting impression.
This one has the opportunity to create something even more meaningful: a lasting legacy.
At HBG Design, we believe the most impactful hospitality environments are those that reflect the people, history, and culture of the communities they serve. The Community Block Wall at Gun Lake Resort stands as a testament to the power of collaboration, storytelling, and design that invites people to become part of the experience.
Emily Marshall & Thor Harland on Placemaking, Contextual Design
Designers and architects in markets across the U.S. take creative cues from local geography, history and culture.
For Emily Marshall, interior design leader, and Thor Harland, senior associate, architecture and design for HBG Design, starting with a blank page before designing a project creates unlimited potential.
“We think about where the space is, the local identity, then how we want the guests to feel,” says Marshall. “What’s the story we want to tell? What’s the property’s identity? Also very important operationally, what’s the flow? And where is the excitement and escape? We start with a concept, and the interior and architecture develop from that.”
“It takes a forensic investigation into things like the site, the climate, the patterns of use, the history, the client,” says Harland, who approaches that journey with “humbleness and openness.”
Placemaking in Tribal Casino Resort Design
“With Native American projects, there’s such a passion for who our clients are and their culture. If we can create an architecture that’s reflective of that, that mimics that—not so much literally, but purposefully, in every design move—it makes for a stronger project,” he says.
“This place-based idea is a journey towards authenticity that is unique to a site and unique to the client. You can’t just pick it up and move it anywhere else, because it wouldn’t function as well. That, for us, is a successful project.”
The work continues “from early concepts through construction documents,” says Marshall. “We’re with the client making decisions on big-picture geometry all the way down to the tile in the guest room. If we can always tie those decisions back to a common thread, it creates a consistency in the design.”
Contextual Design that Enhances Year Round Guest Experience
HBG’s work on the Gun Lake Casino Resort in Wayland, Michigan stands out for Marshall as “one of our finest examples of place-making architecture.” Harland concurs, calling it “one of the best examples of creative, thoughtful depth, from early massing to the materials chosen on the interior. The Gun Lake Tribe was very ambitious, very forward-thinking. They wanted to create something that hadn’t been seen, that was completely new, avant-garde to the area, and make a statement. For us it was important to meet that passion and excitement, and create and carry through that momentum.
“It’s Michigan, with very harsh winters, so the tribe wanted to create an enclosed tropical oasis within.” HBG created an egg-shaped, glass-enclosed atrium, aligned east to west for maximum sun exposure. While dramatic, it’s also functional and can be used for entertainment.
“We created a compelling piece of architecture that’s dynamic and cool to look at,” Harland says. “It also functions better than if we went with just a simple form, like a circle or a square.”
From the first view of a resort rising from the landscape to the smallest details—subtle references to ecology and culture in materials, finishes, color palette, etc.—place-based design tells a story, creating meaningful connections among guests, communities and their shared environment.
Read the full feature Everything in its Place in Global Gaming Business' Casino Style Magazine to learn more about how context and regional authenticity drive casino resort design.
