All the award winners at the House & Garden Awards 2022
The annual House & Garden Awards were established to celebrate the very best talent and endeavour to be found in the interior design industry, and last night, at an awards ceremony in Mayfair, we did just that, recognising the individuals and studios that have shaped interior design taste over the past twelve months, and longer.
Among them are those who have left an indelible mark on their profession, shaped over decades of design practice, as well as those who look set to do so over the coming years. There are interior designers, gardening experts, paint specialists, craftspeople and those accomplished in private and hospitality spaces alike. They come from a range of backgrounds, upbringing and education. But what they all have in common is this: they are the people shaping the conversations around interior design, that nebulous, intoxicating world that touches all of our lives whether we’re aware of it or not. And that’s a big deal.
So, without further ado, here they are: all the winners from the 2022 edition of the House & Garden Awards.
The Top 100 and House & Garden Awards are published in our November issue, out now. You can download House & Garden on your iPhone, iPad or Android device now or subscribe today to get your issue for just £1.
1/10Lifetime Achievement: David Mlinaric
Sponsored by Lapicida. Pictured: David Mlinaric with Lapicida Managing Director Jason Cherrington
David Mlinaric refuses to spill the beans on his clientele, but when The New York Times profiled him in 2008, it suggested rock stars and Rothschilds were among them. He studied at The Bartlett School of Architecture and worked for Michael Inchbald and, briefly, for architect Dennis Lennon, before setting up on his own in 1961. Based in Chelsea, he was at the epicentre of Swinging London and it is said he was thrown out of both the Cavalry Club and Annabel’s nightclub for dressing inappropriately. That is hard to square with a career during which he has decorated some of the most exquisite interiors in the land, including Spencer House. ‘I learnt early in my career that one job well done always leads to two more,’ he says. Many a designer has spent their formative years learning at his feet, among them Hugh Henry, Tino Zervudachi and Hugh Leslie. David is 83 and continues to work with a few clients with whom he has a long-standing relationship. One gets the sense they will not let him retire.
2/10Designer of the Year (Interiors): Maddux Creative
Sponsored by Farrow & Ball. Pictured: Scott Maddux and Jo leGleud (seated) with Charlotte Cosby, Head of Creative at Farrow & Ball. Rug provided by Robert Stephenson.
There is an undeniable glow surrounding Maddux Creative’s founders, Scott Maddux and Jo leGleud, at the moment. This dynamic duo met clubbing some 20 years ago and last year celebrated the 10th anniversary of Maddux Creative. Scott arrived from the US in 1994 and worked for the likes of David Champion, Hubert Zandberg and Ann Boyd; Jo’s background is in embroidery for the fashion industry. House & Garden has published two of their projects this year. Their ‘playful, elegant and brave’ designs for a Primrose Hill family house landed them on the cover of the June issue. It was the second time that client had chosen to work with Maddux Creative – always a good sign. And, in this issue, we take a look at a completely different project: a rigorously researched renovation of a gothic revival house. ‘They are lovely, warm people and a lot of fun to work with,’ says the owner. ‘They have amazing ideas and pushed us to consider things I thought that I was completely shut off to.’ madduxcreative.com
3/10Designer of the Year (Gardens): Urquhart & Hunt
Sponsored by Cole & Son. Pictured: Lulu Urquhart (seated) and Adam Hunt with Marie Karlsson, Global Managing Director of Cole & Son
Lulu Urquhart and Adam Hunt are still reeling from the Gold Medal win for their rewilded garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show this year, which was also awarded Best in Show. ‘We wanted to convey the sense of hope that's possible when we all stop and look at nature,’ says Lulu. ‘We went in as deep as we could to show how quickly the ecosystems of a landscape can be restored if you go about it in the right way.’ Based in Somerset, Lulu and Adam take a sustainable approach. Having joined forces in 2006, they have a shared passion for nature that has defined their work from the start. ‘Our style is naturalistic, romantic and free. Creating beauty through careful design is essential to the ecological restoration that is so needed.’ Adam, who has a master’s degree in ecology from Birkbeck University, is interested in spatial design and sacred geometry, while Lulu brings horticultural experience and an interest in medicinal herbs to the partnership. With a leaning towards large, rural projects, their team offers everything from landscape strategy to the finer details of planting and design. In 2012, they worked with Piet Oudolf in the planting and execution of the Hauser & Wirth garden in Somerset, and other public projects include the new Roman Garden at The Newt in Somerset and the Italian Giardini Pistola, in Puglia. urquharthunt.com
4/10The List Award for Design Excellence: Laura Stephens
Sponsored by Poliform.
Dulwich-based interior designer Laura Stephens knows how to create beautiful and practical interiors by invigorating spaces with her elegant and charmingly pretty style. Laura, who became a member of The List last year, started her career as a geography teacher but, after the birth of her first daughter, retrained as an interior designer at Chelsea College of Arts. She started off slowly, running a small business sourcing and restoring furniture, and today she takes on only a handful of full-scale interior design projects at a time. While Laura’s designs are always true to her clients’ tastes, people invariably come to her for her fresh sense of colour and pattern. She says that taking on her first full-time employee has been a game-changer, allowing her to get stuck into what she really loves – creating beautiful rooms that sing with positivity. laurastephens.co.uk
5/10Rising Star (Gardens): Charlie Hawkes
Sponsored by WOW!house.
One of the most exciting young horticulturists to have emerged in recent years, Charlie Hawkes has thrown himself into the world of garden design since completing a master’s degree in landscape architecture at Edinburgh University, gardening at Great Dixter and Gravetye Manor to gain experience. He worked with Tom Stuart-Smith for three years before setting up his own business in 2021. He also spent seven formative months gardening at Dan Pearson’s Tokachi Millennium Forest in Japan, an experience that influenced his own approach to planting and design. Current projects include a Quaker farmstead with 77 acres of forest in Upstate New York, where he is gently opening up views and increasing biodiversity: ‘The balance between opening up spaces and not losing the essence of the place is key. You have to not impose unnecessarily.’ He won a Gold Medal and Best All About Plants Garden for his debut at Chelsea this year: an intriguing, plant-filled space for the Wilderness Foundation. ‘It was more of an installation than a garden,’ he says. ‘I wanted to give people an immersive, exciting experience and the planting was inspired by real plant communities in Japanese forests.’ charliehawkes.co.uk
6/10Rising Star (Interiors): Amechi Mandi
Sponsored by Zoffany. Pictured: Amechi Mandi (seated) with Peter Gomez, Zoffany Lead Designer. Rug provided by Robert Stephenson.
Born and raised in Cameroon, Amechi Mandi moved to Berlin at 17 to study social sciences at university. He built a career in fashion there – styling shoots, working on trade fairs – then moved to England in 2014 to study product and furniture design at London Metropolitan University. After a stint working for lighting company Pooky, Amechi began developing his own collection, based on textiles he had grown up with. ‘I knew I wanted to bring my cultural heritage into my designs,’ says the designer, whose work came to our attention when it featured as part of the Heal’s Discovers programme in 2021. It is Amechi’s rich heritage that so heavily informs his fabrics today, which evoke the geometric motifs and bright colours typical of northern Cameroon and northern Nigeria. His patterns are digitally printed onto cushions made of velvet, linen and silk, and the appeal of both the designs themselves and the energy that goes into them has not gone unnoticed. As well as producing his own collection, Amechi has collaborated with Dado Atelier on a series of fun and bright digitally printed wallpapers. amechihome.com
7/10The Pineapple Award for Hotel Design: Natalia Miyar
Sponsored by Vispring. Pictured: Natalia Miyar and Jim Gerety, Managing Director of Vispring
‘Travel informs much of my life,’ says interior architect and designer Natalia Miyar, who was born in Mexico, has Cuban-American roots and runs her design atelier out of London and Miami. It seems fitting that, after working predominantly on residential projects from New York to Ibiza, she should have turned her hand to the hospitality sector. Natalia’s work at The Twenty Two – London’s smartest new opening this year on a corner of Grosvenor Square, W1 – showcases her talent for combining glamour and comfort. ‘Interiors should be easy, tactile and highly personal,’ she says, adding that she likes to balance practicality and beauty. At The Twenty Two, Natalia has worked closely with owner Navid Mirtorabi to create interiors that capture the vibrancy of her personal design mantra, while paying homage to the elegance and history of the Edwardian building. We love the jewel-box colours deployed in the schemes and the fact that her interiors are crazy and fun without ostentation. There is a buzz, an energy and a wit to this hotel, which delivers a new youthful dynamism to the heart of Mayfair. nataliamiyar.com
8/10Project of the Year: Poston House by Francis Sultana
Sponsored by V-Zug.
In Herefordshire, this mid-18th-century, Sir William Chambers-designed ‘casino’ (from the Italian for small house) is an architectural gem. This is thanks in no small part to Poston’s previous owners, who collaborated with the late architect Philip Jebb to remove Victorian elements and reinstate neoclassical accents. The current owners worked with the interior designer Francis Sultana, who brought to the project what was described as his ‘hybridised aesthetic that blends historically accurate decorating and unabashedly modern design’ when Poston was in the December 2021 issue. The level of detail is extraordinary – from the custom-coloured bedroom carpet that works beautifully with de Gournay’s silk ‘Oriental Landscape’ wallcovering, to the numerous pieces of furniture commissioned from the artist Mattia Bonetti. There is specialist decorative paintwork throughout. For example, the woodwork in the rotunda dining room has a mellowed- out patina that stops it from feeling too box-fresh. Anyone familiar with Francis’s work knows he is at his best with clients willing to go on a journey with him to explore the heights of creativity. And that was certainly the case at Poston. francissultana.com
9/10Responsible Design Award: Edward Bulmer
Sponsored by Vinterior. Pictured: Edward Bulmer and Lucy Ward, Brand Director of Vinterior. Rug provided by Robert Stephenson.
Ever since Edward Bulmer was featured in House & Garden’s inaugural Green By Design supplement in 2008, we have been impressed by his commitment to creating sustainable interiors. The eco-friendly and plastic-free natural paint collection he launched in 2015 is a key part of his mission, but so, too, is his work at historic houses such as Goodwood and Pitshill House. ‘Renovation and sustainability are two sides of the same coin,’ says the designer, whose environmental awakening occurred in the Nineties when he started reading The Ecologist. At the time, he had just started a career centred around historic buildings, first working for David Mlinaric, then the National Trust and then picture restorer Alec Cobbe. ‘It makes sense to choose natural, breathable and healthier materials,’ he says. In practice, this goes from the small elements, such as choosing wool for curtains or solid wooden frames for furniture, to encouraging clients to convert to biomass or geothermal heating systems: ‘It’s about being conscious and thinking about the choices you make when it comes to interiors.’ edwardbulmerinteriordesign.co.uk
10/10Special Contribution to the Design Industry: Turner Pocock
Sponsored by Julian Chichester. Pictured: Bunny Turner (left) and Emma Pocock (seated) with Jodie Hopkins, CEO of Julian Chichester
They are at the helm of a 12-strong interior design team with 18 projects currently on its books, so it is hard to imagine Bunny Turner and Emma Pocock have much spare time. And yet the pair have managed to launch TP Caring Spaces, providing interior design services to charities. So far, they have created a sitting room and bedroom for staff nurses at Mencap Dunstable and a staff break room at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals, SE1. The idea for the charity came about in 2019; in 2021, it received charitable status. ‘We work in an affluent industry and wanted to find a way to give back,’ says Bunny. ‘We’re aware of how a well-designed space can improve people’s lives.’ Their focus is currently mainly on London and they are working on an end-of-life room at Great Ormond Street Hospital, WC1. ‘So far, we’ve put about £100,000 into the charity, but we’ve also been luckyto have generous contractors and suppliers who’ve helped,’ says Emma. To boost the coffers, they recently introduced an optional surcharge for Turner Pocock’s clients and will be running a charity raffle throughout December via Instagram, with a prize for each day of Advent. ‘We’re just getting started,’ says Bunny. turnerpocock.co.uk
