AV Case Study: The Velvet Glove, Sydney
Videri’s ultra-thin digital Canvas powers a curated art experience in this new Sydney hospitality venue.
8 August 2025
The Velvet Glove is the launch venue of Goldilux Hospitality. Situated in Darlinghurst, Sydney, it’s a modestly sized restaurant and bar with big aspirations. Director Gabriel Di Bello explains: “We launched The Velvet Glove with an exclusive, private-club feel, without excluding anyone,” he explains. “We’re combining art, dining, and a VIP club experience.”
Gabriel knew immediately that his plan to fill The Velvet Glove with art would be tough to realise. Art isn’t cheap and to regularly switch out artwork to keep things fresh would make the exercise even less realistic. He began to explore digital alternatives. And, initially, these options were hardly more realistic: “I wanted to display art connected to the bar’s aesthetic – something visually engaging for diners,” says Di Bello. “To avoid the expense of physically rotating artwork, I explored a mosaic screen installation and discovered Videri. It was far more cost‑effective than other options, and Videri shipped with a CMS that met our needs out of the box.”
NOT A BIG TV
Videri isn’t just another TV, its Canvas product is designed for theming spaces and creating eye-catching displays, not for showing the ‘big match’ on a Friday night.
Videri Canvas can be arranged in a number of configurations, with the CMS (content management system) making it easy to arrange content across multiple displays without expensive third-party hardware. The Velvet Glove’s stunning seven-panel Videri Canvas installation is some four metres across and two metres high. It’s impossible to miss and draws patrons into the bar/restaurant.
“They resemble framed art more than screens,” comments Di Bello. “The Videri CMS is intuitive and doesn’t require becoming a technical expert, unlike other systems I considered.”
The CMS allows Gabriel to cycle through some 200 curated public-domain artworks he’s hand picked on a five minute rotation. He crops and composes the images to suit the screens, creating a considered experience that goes beyond simply throwing a JPG onto a panel.
“The Videri system offers a gateway for introducing art to people who might not seek it out otherwise,” says Di Bello. “It’s often larger than life, and grander in scale than seeing the art in person. People are taken aback by the size and presence of the artwork.”
A PLATFORM FOR CREATIVE VENUES
For Westan, the ANZ distributor of Videri, The Velvet Glove is a perfect showcase of how digital displays can enrich hospitality design without becoming intrusive.
“Videri Canvas displays are purpose-built for venues like this,” notes Richie Cheng, Westan’s Head of Commercial Sales & Product. “They’re super easy to install. The solution utilises the wireless network, and the onboard CMS doesn’t require specialist AV staff. It’s as close to plug-and-play as it gets, and the results speak for themselves.”
The Videri platform supports not only static images but also digital video, motion graphics, and photography. Content can be presented as an individual content on each canvas or be part of the complete wall. For Di Bello, that opens a creative runway: “The plan is to commission artists to produce bespoke digital content for the screens.”
FUTURE-PROOFING HOSPITALITY
Goldilux is on a hospitality journey. Word of mouth is pushing trade to The Velvet Glove with minimal marketing. Already Gabriel Di Bello and his fellow directors are looking at other sites, and other ways in which Videri Canvas might be employed.
“We’re currently looking at taking on a beachside venue and Videri would be perfect in that sort of location. It could artistically echo the surroundings. The potential is limitless.”
In a world where hospitality tech often focuses on efficiency, security or televised sport, Videri’s deployment here is quietly counter-cultural. It’s aesthetic-first. It’s a tech platform as much for artists and curators as it is for venue managers. In other words, it’s a canvas – not a billboard.
And in Gabriel Di Bello’s hands, it’s a canvas that speaks volumes.
The Velvet Glove: thevelvetglove.com.au
Westan (Videri): westan.com.au
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