THE JOURNAL
world calendar – is an example of how she resists aesthetic mimicry even when working with archival material. As TS Eliot would have it, “the past should be altered by the present as much as the present is directed by the past.” It is Kemp’s ability to collaborate with other
historic British brands, including Wedgwood and Spode, as well as artists and craftspeople such as Pippa Caley, Gareth Devonald Smith and Melissa White, that has nourished her creativity. “I have immense respect
for Kit’s eye and her fearless
approach to design,” says Ann Grafton, GP & J Baker’s managing director and creative director. As well as working with her own fabric and
wallpaper collections, those from other showrooms at the Design Centre feature heavily in her work, notably those of Pierre Frey, which supplied many of the designs for Warren Street Hotel; Vaughan, Porta Romana, Lewis & Wood and Madeaux all make frequent appearances too. It’s a regular port of call for her team, which includes two of her daughters, Willow and Minnie (the latter describes it as a “hive of inspiration”). This spirit of collaboration continues to drive
new projects, including the townhouse hotel in Bloomsbury and another
still on the drawing
board. Anyone who has followed Kit Kemp’s career over the past decades will know that neither will follow a formula; instead, they will be part of a constantly evolving story.
210825_KITKEMP_INT-art.indd 86-87
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: A sofa in Madeaux’s ‘Jajim’ fabric and a Vaughan ‘Imari’ lamp at Warren Street Hotel show a virtuoso handling of pattern and colour; bold headboards are a Firmdale signature – this one at Ham Yard Hotel is upholstered in ‘Tudor Rose’ fabric shown against a backdrop of ‘Tradewind’ wallcovering, both from the designer’s latest collection with GP & J Baker; Kit Kemp’s ‘Songbird’ wallcovering for Andrew Martin, and sofas in ‘Worlds Apart’ fabric for GP & J Baker, both at Soho Hotel OPPOSITE: The Garden Suite at Warren Street Hotel, with a sofa in Pierre Frey’s punchy ‘Rangiroa’ fabric and Kit Kemp’s ‘Sunny Robin’ floor lamp for Porta Romana
-19 -
© Simon Brown
© Simon Brown
© Tory McTernan
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
