A Passionate Pursuit

From Paris to New York City, id Design Awards juror Jean-Philippe Nuel is redefining the art of thoughtful hospitality.

- Joanne Molina

When you’re designing the settings for the most reputable and stylish stays in France, it’s easy to become enamoured with the quest for an ongoing, glaring spotlight. But as authentic design icons know, what initially appears as a warm glow can easily transform into a garish glare. Perhaps this is why the beloved French architect and designer Jean-Philippe Nuel, Director of his eponymous Studio, has quietly created an empire of hospitality projects, yacht designs and products throughout France and abroad – all while earning a reputation amongst colleagues and developers as a remarkably educated, insightful – and thought-provoking – designer.

“I am inspired by cinema and literature but also our environment, the city, nature all around us,” says Nuel. “I am also interested in sociology and philosophy, as they give a sobering view of our world. Our work is the materialisation by the object or the architecture of the evolutions of our society, both culturally and socially,” he states.

Nuel considers these ‘evolutions’ to be the core of his industry. “Design is inevitably linked to social and economic problems. The world has experienced a tremendous upheaval in the last 50 years with the advent of the digital world and a service society. Designs follow these mutations, giving answers to accompany the transformations and also to correct the imbalances that arise from any fundamental changes,” he explains.

With his fervour for humanities and the environment, it’s easy to see why his designs display an effortless connection with people’s seemingly universal need to both find both pleasure and wonder in their surroundings.