Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.
Name: James Thurstan Waterworth
Occupation: Interior Designer and Founder of Thurstan.
Instagram: @_thurstan.
Hometown: London, UK.
Studio Location: London, UK.
Describe what you make: We create timeless, characterful interiors that feel beautifully considered yet effortlessly lived in. Based in the historic surroundings of Charterhouse Square in London, my practice, Thurstan, is rooted in a love of architectural heritage, thoughtful design and the way people actually live. I’m interested in creating spaces that feel comfortable, welcoming and practical, while responding sensitively to the architecture, history and surroundings of each project. Since launching Thurstan in 2018, we’ve worked on a diverse range of bespoke hospitality projects and private residences around the world. I’m fortunate to have a brilliant multidisciplinary team spanning interior design, architecture and product design, which allows us to take a considered and holistic approach to every project. Ultimately, I want to create spaces that feel personal and authentic, interiors with a sense of history and character that are designed to be lived in and enjoyed for years to come.
The most important thing you’ve designed to date: So many projects have been important for different reasons, but I’d say Soho House Miami is up there because it was a pivotal moment in my career. It was one of my first major projects after graduating and I led the development of the project while working alongside Martin Brusinski. It gave me the opportunity to work across both sides of the Atlantic and paved the way to my becoming European Design Director at Soho House. My years at Soho House gave me a deep understanding of hospitality design and, perhaps more importantly, of how people want to feel in a space. That experience continues to inform my work at Thurstan today and complements our residential work.
Describe the problem your work solves: For me, good design is ultimately about helping people live better. An interior should make everyday life feel easier, more comfortable and more enjoyable. It should respond to the way people actually live as well as looking effortlessly beautiful. I’m interested in creating environments that feel intuitive and welcoming, spaces that support how you live, work, rest and spend time with others. The challenge is often to bring together the practical and the emotional: creating spaces that function effortlessly while also giving people a sense of comfort, character and belonging. Ultimately, I want the interiors we create to enrich the lives of the people who inhabit them.
Share the project you are working on now: We’re currently working on a beautiful country house in Wiltshire for a young family, and it’s a particularly exciting project because we’re thinking very much about the long term. At the moment, we’re in the master-planning stage, looking at the property as a whole and considering how the family will use it now and in the future. The project involves everything from redirecting the driveway and restoring and reconfiguring the 18th-century farmhouse, to converting a series of existing barns for new uses. There will be spaces designed specifically around family life — a party barn, gym and wellness areas, as well as quieter, more private spaces throughout the house. We’re also looking carefully at how the family will move through and experience the property, and how the different buildings and spaces connect with one another. It’s a wonderful opportunity to take an existing historic property and thoughtfully adapt it for modern family life, while retaining the character and sense of place that makes it special.
A new or forthcoming project we should know about: We’ve just celebrated the completion and opening of The Zetter Bloomsbury, and we’re looking forward to the next new Zetter opening in Amsterdam at the end of the year. The Zetter Bloomsbury involved bringing together six Georgian townhouses to create a single hotel, while working very closely with the existing architectural fabric. We wanted the original details and domestic character of the buildings to guide the design, rather than imposing something new upon them.
From the outset, the ambition was to create the feeling of an evolved, lived-in home belonging to a well-travelled friend, somewhere whose stories, objects and treasures have been gathered over time. The result is distinctly residential and eclectic. The location beside the British Museum was also a huge source of inspiration. Its archives and the area’s rich intellectual and creative history informed the interiors, which have a layered, global feel. You’ll find references ranging from African and Oceanic artifacts and Asian decorative pieces to antique textiles sourced from Japan, Africa, Istanbul and across Asia, worked into cushions, lampshades and upholstery.
There are also subtle references to the area’s more recent creative history, including post-war artworks that nod to the late Howard Hodgkin, whose studio was nearby. For me, it’s a project that captures what I love about hospitality design, creating somewhere that feels full of character and history, but also somewhere you immediately feel at home.
What you absolutely have to have in your studio: Good music, delicious smells and plenty of art and fresh mint for tea. There’s almost always music playing, and if I get to choose, it’ll usually be ’80s West African beats. There are always delicious smells from Perfumer H or Verden candles, and the artwork is constantly changing depending on what we’re working on. It’s a working space, but I like it to feel inspiring, comfortable and a little bit lived in too.
What you do when you’re not working: Spending time with my kids is, without a doubt, my favourite thing to do and what I always try to be doing when I’m not working. And, once in a blue moon, I’ll try to spend a day at Lord’s watching a Test match. There’s something rather special about sitting there for an entire day with nowhere else to be.
Sources of creative envy (dead or alive): That’s a hard one, there are so many people whose work I admire, but three that always come to mind are David Kime, Chester Jones and Axel Vervoordt. I admire their ability to create spaces with a real sense of soul and permanence. Their work feels instinctive rather than overly designed. I admire that restraint, and the way they allow materials, objects and architecture to speak for themselves.
The distraction you want to eliminate: Social media.
Concrete or marble? Good question. I probably use more marble than concrete, but I’d love to use concrete more.
High-Rise Or Townhouse? Townhouse, always.
Remember or Forget? I have the worst memory in the world so it would be nice to remember more.
Aliens or Ghosts? Ghosts, definitely. There are so many people who have passed that I’d love to sit down and have a good chat with.
Dark Or Light? Light. With the occasional dark.
