I am sometimes asked by friends and, increasingly, a wider network, to help them with interiors projects.

I have an understanding of materials from many years working in the design industry. I have also learned how to use colour and plan spaces from my own projects and a useful education programme.

Living and renting in many different properties over the years and finally working on our own house refurbishment allowed me to fully understand the needs of clients and how our homes can support the demands of modern life.

I create interiors concepts for clients which can serve as a reference or form the basis of an overall project including furniture selection and spacial planning.

I was asked by the brilliant Zuketa Films to research and help produce a film about children’s performance for the Young V&A, which opened in July 2023.

The film included newly filmed footage of contemporary performance and archived filmed performances from the V&A archive. We wanted children to engage with the film as well as feeling inspired to make their own performances in the gallery space.

The result is a film which shows performance for and with children, in all its guises: acting, dancing, singing, puppetry, costumes and stage sets.

The brief was to curate a trail of historical points of interest on the Kings Road, through the lens of design. Working with the designer and curator Tetsuo Mukai, we chose 14 points of interest from Sloane Square to Worlds End.

Some points may be familiar, some will be a discovery, and some you may have to just imagine. From the Victorian Arts and Crafts to the swinging sixties and Sloane Rangers of the 80s, the Kings Road is a good place for daydreaming and imagining.

A project for London Design Festival supported By Cadogan Estates and the Kings Road Partnership.

Writing editorial materials for Sigmar, the Modernist design shop / gallery and interior design studio on Kings Road, London.

Sigmar is a beautiful shop on the Kings Road, established by the lovely Nina Hertig and Ebba Thott, it specialises in rare Modernist furniture, mostly from Scandinavia. The shop also represents craftspeople such as Viennese brass makers Carl Aböck and Danish ceramics studio KH Würtz. Nina and Ebba have also also run a successful interior design studio for over 20 years working with clients internationally.

The shop required an update to their website as well as printed written texts about the designers they work with and represent.

Editorial direction for Arabeschi di Latte’s new website. Arabeschi di Latte is a design studio that works at the intersection of art, design and food. Established by Francesca Sarti, an Italian architect and designer, Arabeschi di Latte works on installations, bespoke events, workshops and creative direction for international clients including the New York Times, Selfridges, Faye Toogood and Gaggenau.

The project involved working with Francesca and the developers to plan and implement the new website, a visual feast of 50 Arabeschi di Latte’s projects over the last two decades. The role involved: online strategy, researching, writing, editing and managing all content and visuals. I ensured the provision of a (separate) categorised digital library of all information and visuals for the client.

Images: [website lilac] Bitossi Pink Bar by Arabeschi di Latte for Bitossi Home, [website white], [website pink], The Substance of Matter for Gaggenau.

I edited a large volume of text for a contributing writer of the Phaidon Atlas of Brutalist Architecture.

The Atlas includes over 850 brutalist buildings - existing and demolished, classic and contemporary – across nine continental regions.

I enjoyed researching the intriguing histories of these architectural masterpieces, understanding the materials and forms of a movement which is both loved and loathed in equal measure.

For the Brompton Design District 2019 programme the curators Jane Withers Studio invited three design studios to create outdoor installations in the District in response to the theme ‘Nature/Nurture’. The installations ran throughout the London Design Festival, alongside a series of temporary exhibitions in vacant spaces and a special commission of temporary architecture by spanish designer Jorge Penades.

I worked closely with the team of curators, project manager and PR advisors Zetteler to manage all creative brand elements for Brompton in digital, 2D and 3D. This included working with the talented graphic designers Studio Vedet on printed maps, posters, invitations and interpretations and creating a strategy for wayfinding: pavement graphics and site-specific exhibition signage, as well as photography, social media and online presence.

Image 1 Jorge Penades and his ‘Traceless’ pavilion by Amandine Alessandra

Images 2 & 3 Brompton wayfinding and Brompton website (my own images)

Images 4 & 5 Brompton signage and wayfinding by Alessandra for Brompton Design District

Image 6 Nature Nurture mark by Studio Vedet

Images 7 & 8 Please Stand By by Marlene Huissoud at Thurloe Square Gardens & Nature Scenes by Interaction Research Studio, Goldsmiths University at Alexander Square Gardens, both commissioned by Jane Withers Studio for Brompton Design District.

Matter to Matter is the Latvian Pavilion for the London Design Biennale 2018 at Somerset House. Conceived by Latvian designer Arthur Analts, Variant Studio, the installation is a large glass wall which creates condensation for visitors to interact with, and a contemplative bench representing the proportional variety of woods grown in Latvia.

Working with the Latvian Museum of Art, Decorative Art and Design, I was asked to create a book for the exhibition and to support the designer with curatorial elements of the project such as interpretation texts. The book and the exhibition was at Somerset House from 4 - 23 September 2018 and won the Best Design Medal from over 40 other countries showing at the Biennale.

The Brompton Design District 2018 Programme Material Consequences was set by Curator Jane Withers to explore projects which rethink materials and waste. I was asked to curate a series of talks for Material Consequences, working with the rich content of design topics within the programme.

There were four Material Consequences Talks: Why Materials Matter with Seetal Solanki of Ma-tt-er, Designing the Circular Economy with FranklinTill, Indigenous Materials, New Materiality with Stitch by Stitch, Fernando Laposse and the V&A and Water Futures with Jane Withers Studio and #OneLess. These were combined with further talks on similar themes by Brompton Partners to create an overall Talks Programme for Brompton.

As part of this project, Thought Starters of White City Place collaborated to programme a series of six Podcasts within the Pod, a soundproof structure designed by Fathom Architects, whilst it visited Brompton for the final weekend of the London Design Festival.

After 12 years the Brompton Design District required a new look. I commissioned Milan-based Studio Vedet to create a strong identity and website. This was implemented in summer 2018, in advance of our programme for London Design Festival, Material Consequences set by Curator Jane Withers.

The website draws attention to the annual London Design Festival programme which includes a series of exhibits and events, and outlines the District’s rich history of design and culture through Brompton’s permanent museum institutions, iconic brands and galleries.

A big part of the Brompton identity is a printed Map or guide to the exhibition programme. Other printed elements included a large poster for the Talks Programme, large scale maps attached outside buildings and 20 Interpretation Boards printed on recycled cardboard for different exhibits across Brompton.

Lastly, the Brompton programme required a complex Wayfinding project, I commissioned Glyphics sign-makers to create a range of high-level wooden protruding signs, pavement graphics in aluminium foil and wooden freestanding outdoor signs. All signs and signage fitted the Material Consequences theme, which meant all elements were reusable or recycled after the event.

The Material Consequences programme for Brompton Design District ran from 15-23 September during the annual London Design Festival, with largest ever attendance numbers in Brompton. The District boasted 36 exhibits, 20 pop-ups exhibitions, 12 talks, 6 podcasts and an open evening on Thursday 20 September.

A project for a private client to oversee the re-design of a new office environment and build a collection of design pieces for the new space. The aim is to improve the experience for those who both work and visit the office, and to communicate the nature and interests of the company’s business within its office environment.

The client has invested significantly in contemporary architecture and design, but this has not, yet, been reflected in it's own office environment. This research-based project considers the company history as well as the history of the building in which the new office will be created. Working with matavai bay architects, the project investigates the current usage and feel of the company’s office environment before proposing new initiatives that can best communicate the interests of the company, as well as creating a benchmark for contemporary, sustainable office design.

The Brompton Programme for 2017 was the district's most ambitious yet - 24 temporary exhibitions within nineteenth century townhouses, small stables-turned garages and unused retail spaces - during the London Design Festival.

The programme for 2017, Other Stories - alternative perspectives on design set by Brompton's curator Jane Withers, added an academic exploration of contemporary design by looking at design for social impact and new uses for traditional materials and techniques. 

As manager of the District I worked closely with Jane Withers Studio to realise the temporary exhibition programme, and to create the marketing (online and print), manage PR (agency), logistics and budget for the entire project. The result was an inspiring programme within London's most important design destination. 

Photo credits: Brompton Cafe by Today Bread with furniture by M-L-XL; Round and Square, Martino Gamper; Best Show, Workshop for Potential Design; Taxonomy of Everyday Objects, 200 Grs and Peter Pilotto Townhouse Takeover, Peter Pilotto (as cover image). All photography by Amandine Alessandra.