Elicyon is a multidisciplinary Kensington-based design studio, passionate about creating exclusive interiors that reflect high levels of craftsmanship. The company ethos is to nurture talent and create a framework in which upcoming designers thrive.
When Charu Gandhi founded Elicyon in 2014 she chose London as her base, instinctively believing the city would be the perfect setting for a creative hub at the epicentre of British design, with its long history of honouring craftspeople, from joiners to goldsmiths.
‘London’s historic craftsmanship legacy plays such a role in how British design is perceived everywhere,’ says Charu. Today, she continues to be passionate about materiality, texture and craft, so Elicyon works in collaboration with a community of likeminded craftspeople, artisans, manufacturers and artists.
Last year was an exciting one, with projects as far afield as Jakarta. Elicyon completed Project White, an outstanding monochrome lateral apartment at One Hyde Park, designed with pops of vivid colour and unusual textures, and containing an important collection of modern art. This year, Elicyon will be working with Northacre on the hugely anticipated No.1 Palace Street, near Buckingham Palace, where Elicyon will be responsible for dressing all the communal spaces. Elicyon will also be completing a large private residence in Marylebone and continuing to work with Omniyat on super-prime residences in Dubai’s One Palm, after designing seven apartments and completing a 20,000 sq/ft apartment with an extensive roof terrace.
‘I believe we improve our clients’ lives, quite simply by creating their dream homes that facilitate their varied lifestyles,’ says Charu. ‘We are often privy to very significant family events and moments, and we celebrate these. They could be anything from a birth to a marriage, so we might design the perfect nursery or create a beautiful room in which multiple generations of a family can come together. We treat clients’ aspirations as our own, weaving them into the fabric of their homes.’
Charu has a deserved reputation for being a driving force for change in the design world. She is on the founding committee of United in Design, a charitable platform set up in 2021 to address the lack of diversity in the industry. Charu is part of its mentor programme, hosting coaching sessions for her mentees throughout the year. A qualified architect by trade, she has also been a partner on the RIBA Future Architects student mentoring scheme, sharing her invaluable experience with those starting out in the profession.
Elicyon has also worked with the London Mayor’s fund to offer internships to school aged children from less fortunate areas of the city, offering them an education on the industry and how to run a business, with the aim of inspiring and encouraging a career in design.
Charu concludes: ‘As a studio, we are most proud that despite another turbulent year, we have remained a full team and continued to execute complex projects internationally, even if we haven’t always been able to be present on the ground. We’re excited to be refreshing our brand with a new website in 2022 and we’ve never been busier or boasted a stronger team than the one we are today.’
