DE S IGN CENTRE
“MOST OF MY INTERIORS DONʼT GET PHOTOGRAPHED – SO IT WAS IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO SEE A ROOM OF MINE THAT WAS ‘ALIVEʼ”
room of mine that was ‘alive’ and for them to be in it.” Philip Vergeylen of Paolo Moschino Ltd, who co-created the Drawing Room in 2022, agrees. “In our world, much of what we do is private clients’ homes, which is often confidential, so to have something so visible, where people could experience our work first hand, was incredibly valuable”. For James Lentaigne, managing director of
Drummonds, working with Barlow & Barlow in 2023 and Nicola Harding for the Powder Room in 2025 provided an opportunity to show that their bathrooms offered more than a classic aesthetic. “The discussions with Lucy Barlow were almost along the lines of ‘let’s go wild and do something really different’”. The result was “a mirrored, disco, futuristic space which seemed perfectly in keeping with the range and was a lot of fun!” Being a sponsor of
the first Media Room in
2025 has been hugely important for Durgesh Sinh, founding director of AV company Nucleus. “It has provided a rare opportunity to position technology firmly within a design-led conversation, rather than treating it as something separate, secondary, or purely functional,” he
says. WOW!house has also generated “momentum, credibility and introductions
that have gone on to translate into business opportunities,” unlocking conversations that might never have surfaced otherwise. Özge Öztürk and Alexandre Simeray, founders
of London-based studio OZA Design, created the Home Bar for WOW!house 2024. Alongside giving them a rare moment of complete creative freedom, it had a positive effect on their business. “We saw a noticeable increase in enquiries following the event, particularly from clients interested in more experiential, hospitality-led spaces,” says Öztürk. “Our social media engagement also grew during and after the exhibition, and the exposure has helped position our studio within a more international and design-aware audience.” Bringing work to new audiences is at the heart the WOW!house project. New York designer
of
Rayman Boozer of Apartment 48 was the first American to be invited, when he designed the Principal Bedroom in 2022. “We had no visibility in London before WOW!house. Iʼve made some great friends and business contacts through this experience,” he says. For Brigitta Spinocchia Freund, who designed Stark’s Curator’s Room last year, the project offered other measures of success. “Through meetings, panel talks, poetry
readings and gatherings, the room took on a life of its own,” she says. “It became not just an interior, but a platform for conversation, connection and the celebration of women’s creative voices.” Many WOWzers, like Paolo Moschino, commented on a real sense of ‘collaborative rather than competitive’ camaraderie and the fulfilment of being among industry peers in a dynamic setting. “We felt it had the right ingredients, great energy, and a real sense of purpose,” he says of his WOW!house experience. “WOW!house has lived up to all expectations as
an unparalleled platform for brands and designers to come together,” says Sanderson’s Lisa Montague. It is a view shared by Darren Price, director of Adam Architecture, who created the Georgian- inspired Facade for last year’s house and is evolving it for this year. For him, WOW!house plays a unique role in the industry because it brings together disciplines of architecture, interior design, garden design, construction and craftsmanship, and places them in direct dialogue. “It creates a rare level of visibility into process,
thinking and execution,
which is something our industry doesn’t often reveal,” he says. “It sets an annual benchmark, not just in quality, but in collaboration.” Long may it continue.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Henry Prideaux in the Martin Moore Kitchen; a detail of the Drawing Room, designed by Paolo Moschino and Philip Vergeylen of Paolo Moschino Ltd; Darren Price of Adam Architecture, in the loggia of the Facade; the Home Bar by OZA Design; cameras at WOW!house – the show has captured the attention of the world’s media
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