Space Imaginator

Albert Einstein famously said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge”. Australian self-taught interior designer Ashley Sutton, responsible for some of Asia’s most eccentric nightlife destinations, such as Ophelia and Iron Fairies in both Bangkok and Hong Kong, is a firm believer in that maxim. He talks to Perspective about his recent work

- Leona Liu

Why did you become a designer?

It was never my intention to be a designer, I only wanted to build boats growing up. I fell into design by mistake – I used to manufacture fairies and I wanted to create a good working space which represented my Iron Fairies books that I had previously written. At the same time, I wanted to help my staff understand what they were making to inspire them, so I created a ‘fairy factory’. People loved the space and would come in and watch us making the fairies. Eventually, landlords started coming to me and asking me to create spaces for them, too.

How did you teach yourself to become a designer?