Kit Kemp: A Day In The Life

Kit Kemp takes inspiration from Victorian toy theatres and the art-collecting Cone Sisters. We caught up with her to discuss her daily routine, her favourite exhibitions and what her dream home looks like…

Kit Kemp On Her Design Icons & Her Dream Home

What’s your typical day like?

I walk to my studio in South Kensington every day, passing the Science Museum, Natural History Museum and the V&A. I see children piling off coaches, so excited about having a day away from school. My office is a stucco-fronted London townhouse on five floors; it has a goodhomely feel. I started working in a cupboard years ago, but now I have the whole house for my design team.

I check in with the designers, which includes two of my daughters (strategically placed on different floors). I prefer to look at colours in the morning light. Creating cohesive ideas for textile collections is always a voyage of discovery and surprise. There is laughter and discussion when my team sits around the table. My favourite time of the week is ‘blog time’ on Zoom when the New York Design and London teams organise the blogs for the week. We talk about things that have inspired us, exhibitions, new rooms we have created for the hotels, and ‘Meet the Maker’ (craftspeople we admire). My design team has to be versatile, creative and practical. A day might involve looking at plans, reconfiguring spaces, creating room schemes for hotels and homes, ideas for new textile collections, new designs for Shop Kit Kemp and, of course, starting buildings from scratch. All three hotels in New York are new-builds from the ground up. Some of the projects take years to come to fruition.

Afternoons are filled with client meetings and calls to New York. There are never enough hours in the day. I walk home, enjoying the different seasons in the fresh air. I love food, as long as it only takes 20 minutes to prepare. Fine china and beautiful glassware makes everything taste better. Tim and I talk about our day over supper and a glass of wine.

Warren Street Hotel, New York

Is there an exhibition that’s caught your design eye?

I recently took our design team to Dennis Severs’ House in Spitalfields for a spooky candlelight tour. Severs was an 18th-century silk weaver, and Rupert Thomas, former editor of World of Interiors, was our knowledgeable guide. We loved the showmanship and madness of it all, but the pièce de résistance came at the end. We entered the small garden room where Pollock’s Toy Theatres was holding a magical pop-up exhibition. ‘If you love art, folly or the bright eyes of children,’ wrote Robert Louis Stevenson, ‘speed to Pollock’s.’ It is a rare treat to get so much knowledge and eccentricity in such a small space. Our much-loved muse Mimi de Biarritz, who sadly passed away earlier this year, would have adored it.

Are there any items you’re coveting right now?

I recently came across Shame Studios, which makes hand woven carpets and shares our passion for craft and the protection of artisanal skills, carefully combining colour and texture. Its new Watercolours collection, created in collaboration with Cindy Leveson, combines tradition with the freedom and expressiveness of water and pigment. The result is a unique collection of abstract rugs. I immediately wanted one for a favourite event space at Soho Hotel.

Who are your design icons?

There are far too many to name here. Currently, the Cone Sisters of Baltimore are top of my list. They were two rather frumpy, grumpy looking sisters who amassed art at full tilt over 50 years in the early 20th century. This very unlikely couple crossed the Atlantic numerous times and avidly purchased works by Picasso, Matisse, Manet, Gauguin, Cézanne, Seurat and Degas when others in their milieu were aghast and outraged by these disreputable artists and their work. Their inspiring collection now makes up a wing of the Baltimore Museum of Art and is not to be missed.

For an up-to-the-minute icon, I was asked to introduce Veere Grenney at an ‘in conversation’ at The Whitby Theatre in New York recently. He is witty and intelligent, and I love his interiors and his line of thought. His new book Seeking Beauty is a good place to discover his work. What would your dream home look like? I would like a kitchen window that overlooks a stable yard, so I can see all the horses popping their heads out of the boxes in the morning. I am not keen on conversation in the morning but I like a good view.

kitkemp.com