KIT KEMP Words: Matt Baker
Did you always want to be a designer? I have always been addicted to colour, fabric and craſts from around the world. It was when I was employed by an architect that I met my husband, Tim. He is a property developer and had enlisted the help of the practice for a project he was working on at the time. Fast forward a few years, aſter we were married, we decided to do something different and have a go at creating a small boutique hotel together – the Dorset Square, Marylebone, which opened in 1985. This is how our business Firmdale Hotels got started. It was great fun working on the design, even though I had no formal training. Tim and I were both very young and never took no for an answer. We now have 10 hotels, including Ham Yard Hotel, Haymarket Hotel, The Soho Hotel, and Charlotte Street Hotel.
What have you worked on recently? I was invited to collaborate with CP Hart, curating a bathroom display for their showroom inWaterloo,
London. It was an opportunity for me to create something completely different to what you would see in the hotels, so it has been great to let my creativity flow. The room set celebrates the celestial, so imagine a bathroom bathed in moonlight with stars and moons floating in marble, velvety midnight blue tiles, and flashes of bright red coral. The marble floor has under-lit star and moon- insets, and the shower features a hand-painted tile mural inspired by my Rikrak fabric design which I made for Christopher Farr Cloth. I also created the Kempton console – the latest addition to the CP Hart furniture range. It is a pared back interpretation of a classic piece in my hotel collection and made from solid beech and carrara marble.
What do you love about designing hotels? I like to champion British art in each project and choose all the artwork in each of the hotels – one of my favourite parts of bringing a design together. I like to be very democratic in the way that I hang pieces as well, so a well-known artist will sit beside a student’s work. For me, art adds life and purpose to a building as well as unexpected fun. I also love the nitty gritty process of building, the craſtspeople involved, and the before and aſter reveal of old buildings being revived with fresh, new designs.
above The Drawing Room at the Charlotte Street Hotel was inspired by the Bloomsbury Set.
right Kit’s display at CP Hart, featuring the Kempton console, priced from £4,500, celebrates the celestial.
What inspires you? Each building I work with inspires me and I learn so much with every project I take on. At Charlotte Street Hotel, for example, I was inspired to incorporate details relating to the Bloomsbury Set – a famous group of English writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in the first half of the 20th century. I found original art from the period and incorporated it throughout the hotel.
What’s next for you? My team and I are working on a new build hotel in TriBeCa in Manhattan, New York. And, back in London we have purchased a site for another build next to The Soho Hotel. I love exploring new areas of the capital and my work allows me to do this in the most creative ways.
Where do you most like to spend time when you’re at home? It has to be the kitchen, where my husband and I spend most of our time. It features light blue Shaker-style cabinetry and faces the garden. It’s attached to a conservatory that acts as our dining room. It suits our informal style of living.
KBB
While we HAVE YOU...
I’ve always been a fan of… Old weather vanes on the top of buildings. Your style in three words… Colourful, carefree, carefully detailed. Favourite hobby... Collecting textiles, but I also love horses and dogs. Any words of wisdom... Hold your nerve and hang on in there.
The Deluxe Terrace room at The Soho Hotel
Co-owner and creative director of Firmdale Hotels, the designer is renowed for her unique interiors. She chats to KBB about her work and love of British art
APRIL 20 l KITCHENS BEDROOMS & BATHROOMS 35
30 minutes with
For stockists turn to p156
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