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Whether he’s at a party at Giorgio Armani’s palazzo in Milan, meeting with a client in Manhattan, or putting the finishing touches on a penthouse in DC, Nestor Santa-Cruz, partner at SKB Architecture and Design, has a sharp eye for detail and a spirited enthusiasm for design.
What time, place, or concept most inspires your interior designs?
I have a passion for art deco from the 1930s and ’40s in France. I also like neoclassical periods, and I am inspired by Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier and Luis Barragan. Today I like English architect David Chipperfield and admire French designer Jacques Grange.
How would you describe your personal style?
I try to make it look as if the client put it all together without my help, as if he or she collected it all during a long period of time, something that looks personal and that has “evolved.”
What are your strongest professional influences?
Fay Jones…one of the disciples of Frank Lloyd Wright…My visit to the house of the late Mexican architect Luis Barragan is one of my most lasting influences: beauty and calmness. Another was the article in Architectural Digest in 1976 with Yves Saint Laurent’s apartment in Paris. It taught me about personal sophisticated style.
What’s the most challenging project you’ve tackled?
My small apartment in Washington, I am always adding stuff.
Name your favorite:
- Recent inexpensive purchase for the home: A $50, 1940s ceramic dish with silver details. I bought it in a shop in Milan in April, during my visit to the Furniture Fair.
- Recent high-end purchase for the home: A Maison Jansen crystal and bronze table lamp bought in Argentina – it was still a deal!
- Design Book: Everyone interested in interior design should have something on David Hicks and on Jean-Michel Frank.
As simply as possible, what is your design philosophy?
Everything in a house should be designed with equal balance of physical and visual comfort. Make it elegant, timeless, and chic – regardless of any constraints.
