Antonio DeLoatch On His Client-Focused Approach To Design
Antonio DeLoatch has taken a decidedly untraditional path to founding his eponymous firm. The up-and-coming designer started advising homeowners he met on the showroom floor when he worked in high-end home retail, and those happy clients and their referrals grew until he had enough business to leave retail behind. A rising figure in the design industry with a refreshing, dynamic approach, he tells LUXE about his client-focused vision and the magic it brings to projects.
What’s your design philosophy? I believe that I’m meant to get up every day to change the way that people live. I am designing a space that is genuinely in service to you, the homeowner, so that you can go out and better serve the world.
How do you realize that goal? By making a real effort to put the client in the driver’s seat and allowing them to challenge me as much as I’m challenging them. It becomes this beautiful, fun working relationship. And I like to be there for a meeting when the nanny is coming in with the dog and the three kids are getting off the bus—that’s when I can see the pain points. If I can understand the stress and where the luxury is missing, then there’s no question that what we create for you will be better than what you’ve experienced—more than you’ve ever imagined your family actually needed.
How is the apartment pictured above an example of this approach? My client is from California and she needed a perfect pied-à-terre in the city. The Hotel des Artistes, her home in Manhattan, is located in a classic building with an almost gothic feel, which we love! When we first saw the duplex apartment, it was dark and a little creepy, but with this huge window. She asked us to help her enhance the unit’s natural light, so we decided not to have any drapery in the living room. I really value natural elements, such as the sun, and the movement they bring within a home.
What else did the owner want from the space? We talked about how she saw herself living in this apartment. This pied-à-terre needed to be a place to escape to, one that would feel like an embrace. So there are moments like a space at the top of the stairs where she can paint or read a book and look out over the sunlit living room. We wanted the rest of the world to disappear, and it’s exactly what happens here: The building is dark, mysterious and full of long hallways, and then you get this bright, happy moment once you enter her home.
