Friday wrapped up a spectacular Texas Design Week here in Houston with a grand finale at the home of Susan and Fayez Sarofim. Immensely talented (and charming) Parisian designer Jean Louis Deniot was the honoree of the very special night, with an illustrated talk and book signing. I had the pleasure of meeting him (and practicing my rusty French), and today I’m sharing some of my favorite Deniot spaces intermixed with some of his words of wisdom from Friday night’s talk.
On the importance of good interior architecture:
““Just like a body determines the dress, the interior architecture determines the interiors.””
On clients who try to intervene with ideas and suggestions:
““If you make your house ugly, it’s not my fault; you have to live there.””
““You don’t define ‘great’ by value, you define it by sense of style — because it stands out to you. You decide it’s special.””
““You can find inspiration everywhere, you just need to be attentive and open your eyes.””
On shopping:
““Each time something catches my eye I have to buy it.””
On the mix of high and low / collecting art and objects:
““Interior design is like a movie. In any room, you have the 1st role, the 2nd role, and the fillers.””
““You want to tell a story, like a fairy tale. Something that amuses you. And if it speaks to you, it will probably speak to other people.”
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“If you could live anywhere other than Paris where would you live?”
““Paris.””