LEADING figures from Scotland's art and design world have been commissioned to devise the interiors for six luxury suites at Edinburgh's five-star G&V Royal Mile Hotel.

Glasgow-based design duo Timorous Beasties, artist Christine Clark, and fashion designer Judy R Clark are among those who have been tasked to work on the project, which forms part of an extensive refurbishment of the George IV Bridge hotel.

Jim Hamilton of Graven Images, which is revamping the bulk of the hotel's 136 bedrooms, is also designing a suite, as are the artist and textile designer Hatti Pattison and furniture designer Holster.

Hotel manager Carina Svensen said the idea of bringing such figures on board was to celebrate the "incredible" talent Scotland has to offer.

It was also driven by comments the hotel received while it traded as Hotel Missoni, when guests would say they would like it to have more of a Scottish identity.

Current operator Carlson Rezidor took over the running of the hotel, whose name is an abbreviation of George and Victoria, in 2009. It switched to G&V from Hotel Missoni on May 5 last year. The property, which is owned by Aberdeen Asset Management, is part of Rezidor's Quorvus Collection.

Ms Svensen said: "We are obviously very proud to be based in Scotland - we were in the days back when Hotel Missoni opened and of course we still are.

"And we really wanted to draw on the fact we are based in this beautiful city and a country that has an incredible amount of local talent. And we wanted to showcase that to our visitors."

Ms Svensen said guests could expect something very different from each of the suites, but noted that "they are all drawn from Scotland."

She said: "Some of these guys have never touched hotels before, so it's a very different project.

"The excitement and the dedication that the artists have for these rooms are truly remarkable. We are very proud to be working with each and every one of them."

The refurbishment of the hotel is underway now but will stop before August, when the Edinburgh International Festival and Fringe get underway - its busiest time of the year.

Ms Svensen said a "significant" part of the work should be complete by then, including four of the designer suites and 30 bedrooms. Work on transforming the lobby, bar, and general food and drink area is schedule to take place later this year, and by the end of the year 90 of the rooms should be complete.

Ms Svensen said a "long discussion" had been held over whether the work should be delayed until after the peak season is over, but the operators felt it was important to be able to showcase the new look to guests who will be in the city during the Festival. Work is progressing slowly in an effort to minimise disruption to guests, she said.

Ms Svensen was unable to disclose how much the hotel is investing in the project.

She said the project has "grown arms and legs" and more has been spent than originally planned. But she noted the owners are convinced the investment will be worth it as the hotel seeks to drive its brand forward.