Interior Style Hunter interviews Plusdesign

04-09-2016 22:54

Claudia Sigismondi and Andrea Proto di Santa Dorotea are both trained architects and partners at their firm Plusdesign. A Swiss based architectural and design firm. I caught up with them recently to discuss design, their latest projects and what’s next for their firm.

What is your design signature/style?
At Plusdesign each project is different. Our main intention is to enhance the existing space and we have a creative approach when designing rather than a preconceived style. We certainly love to reinvent tradition. A sense of history and beauty is part of our background, as both Andrea and I were born and studied architecture in Rome. Our experience in the field of artistic exhibitions also explains our focus on the context as well as on innovative solutions.

What type of people do you love to work with as clients?
We love to work here in Switzerland because it gives us the opportunity to deal with an international clientele with varied background and expectations. Every project is a challenge for our creativity. We have to discover the need underlying our clients’ request and provide them with a customized solution that works. Interaction and teamwork play a key role in our projects.

Can you tell us about a particularly exciting/challenging project?
The Hotel de Rougemont has been a very challenging project, both spatially and stylistically. The hotel was an existing building with many space constraints as well as having to add new facilities and new technical installations to be integrated. Our concept had to fit to the size of the previous rooms, which were really limited in height (2.20m!). We had to find solutions that could improve the perception of space.
We started by creating a concept for the smallest room. Imagining it as a wooden box, opened on one side to the exterior landscape. Placing a mirrored glass shower box in the middle of the space, its presence could provide multiple reflections and a visual link between the indoors and the outdoors, enhancing the sense of well-being while maximizing the sense of space.
The second challenge was finding the right style for its interiors. Being situated in Rougemont, a picturesque village in the same ski resort of the world famous Gstaad. The hotel and its facilities were meant to reflect the spirit of the place, while offering something new and up-to-date in order to fulfill the desires and expectations of an international and sophisticated clientele.
The existing building has been transformed into a contemporary boutique hotel, with a discreet sense of luxury and a cozy atmosphere. We found a common ground between the traditional Swiss chalet style and a contemporary, glamorous alpine resort.
The interiors were designed to convey a discreet sense of luxury combined with a warm atmosphere. Premium materials, such as salvaged lumber and natural stone, clean shaped lines, customized details and a skillful use of light helped us to conjure up the desired result. Contemporary touches of design, unexpected pieces of artwork and photography added interest and a twist of surprise.
Plusdesign was presented with the bronze A’design Award 2015 for the interior design of this hotel.

Does your home reflect your professional style?
Being a pair of architects, every time we design a new home for ourselves, we experiment with new solutions and bring our creative tests to the limits. In our previous home in Rome the challenge was to get rid of all the corridors. In a micro holiday apartment in Tuscany the challenge was to design the interiors inspired by those of a yacht. Now in our cottage in Switzerland our goal was to transform it from a holiday home into an efficient living and working space.
Some pieces of furniture follow us from one home and office to another, being a part of our life. I’m thinking about our Le Corbusier’s long chair, Noguchi’s coffee table, Castiglioni’s Parentesi lamp or Alvar Aalto’s lake vase, but also our collection of designer’s model chairs, which are easier to pack up and are a great way of being surrounded by designer’s masterpieces… even in a limited space!

If you had £10,000 to spend on a piece of furniture/accessory/art/decor item, what would it be and why?
Having worked for a long time designing exhibitions with museums and galleries, we are very interested in art and keep in touch with talented artists and photographers. Therefore I would probably choose a piece of art, something unique that talks to my heart. I would be just fine with an intricate profile in oxidized steel by Paolo Albertelli or a hand-blown glass by the artist Aristide Najean or an exquisite photograph by Vincent Munier.

What’s next for your business/brand?
We have established our business in Switzerland and we are working on local projects as well as on projects elsewhere. We have just finished a project for a micro home with transformable furniture in Zurich and the interior design of an attic apartment in Rome. We’re also working on the restyling of a hotel.
We’re mainly focused on interior design, but also involved in furniture design and in architectural projects. We have just taken part in an architectural competition for a Wine House by the Leman Lake and will soon take part in another.

Which new/up and coming designers do you currently have your eye on?
We constantly keep updated by visiting fairs and exhibitions, consulting specialized manufacturers, cooperating with other designers, as well as reading magazines and searching specialized websites. Just to mention some names of the designers we look up to, in a nonspecific order: Rich Brilliant, Johnson Krugman, Stefano Marolla, Danny Venlet, Fernando Mastrangelo, Oki Sato, Alexander Lotherstein, Angelo Tomaiuolo, Great Things to People, Ad Hoc, but the list is dynamic and there are certainly more to be added.

If someone reading this was about to begin their own home redesign project, what would be your best advice to them?
It can sound pretty Italian, but I would tell them that, in the end, designing interiors is very much like cooking. What you need is the balance between the ingredients to make the right mix. Redesigning a home is more challenging than it looks. There are some basic principles to know about space, light, elements, colors and textures, that need to be taken into consideration.
I would suggest talking to a professional for support but there are some basic rules that can help you reach a good result.

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