The InterContinental Chicago O’Hare Hotel has an international reputation for its luxurious rooms, but it’s also been drawing in people for a different reason.

A fully-functioning art gallery, the Rosemont hotel displays over 100 pieces — from paintings to prints to mixed media — on its first floor. Every elevator landing features murals of Chicago-inspired scenes and artwork commissioned by local artist Jay Ryan hangs in guest rooms.

In the lobby, work from local college art students is showcased adjacent to Robert Rauschenberg prints. And it’s not uncommon for visitors to take a guided champagne-tour during their downtime or to run into people who are not staying at the hotel, but simply admiring the exhibits.

“Having the gallery around us enables us to bring business in,” said Patrick Cook, director of sales and marketing for the hotel. “Really, everywhere you turn here, it’s something different.”

(PHOTOS: Artwork inside the InterContinental Chicago O’Hare.)

The hotel, which opened over three years ago, was designed to house an art exhibit to stand apart from the cluster of nearby hotels. Some of the pieces are its own while others are lent from various galleries. To keep the look fresh, the collection changes every nine to 12 months with the help of River North-based Schneider Gallery, which often picks work from Chicago-area artists.

There’s no set theme, but the goal is to have every piece reflect the space, said Rose Licavoli, assistant director of Schneider Gallery, who works with other galleries to obtain the artwork.

For example, a large rectangular painting of the blue sky and a small plane complement the sleek, white front desk in the lobby. Wesley Kimler’s The Prince stands boldly on a wall further inside the gallery. The 26-piece complete collection of Max and Gaby’s Alphabet by Tony Fitzpatrick hangs in a simple arrangement nearby.

“A lot of times, it keeps people coming back,” said concierge Christopher Pinner of the art. He gives about four tours a week to larger groups or individuals who ask on the spot.

Though small, boutique hotels showcase art, it’s not common for larger ones, like the InterContinental — which has 100,000 square-feet on its first floor — to operate as a gallery, said Cook, adding about one out of every five guests comment on the pieces.

Visitors also pay attention to smaller details, like the rose petal lighting fixtures constructed in Europe that pay tribute to Rosemont and the paper-like airplanes that hang from the ceiling beside a portrait of the sky as an homage to O’Hare.

As guests bounce around the gallery, they pass large structural columns that resemble large tree trunks in the forest and meeting spaces and ballrooms named after iconic museums and artists (think Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol and the Guggenheim).

Last fall, the hotel began working with universities to display student work, which has helped students gain exposure and the hotel update the look in its lobby every three months. A few weeks ago, the hotel held its second opening show with 19 pieces from students at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Licavoli said she hopes the exposure encourages the artists, especially the younger ones, to stay in Chicago instead of opting for a larger city, like New York City or San Francisco. Over a three-month period, tens of thousands of people view the pieces, Cook added.

“It’s just about being different,” Cook said of the gallery and hotel’s efforts. “We’re trying to build a community here.”