Interview | Martyn White Designs

As a new design practice established in 2014, Martyn White Designs has evolved into a unique creative platform for Martyn’s ventures in interior design, photography and art. Martyn’s creativity and influence is well documented on his website and blog, where alongside his own projects and inspiring design advice, he regularly showcases the very best in interior and luxury furniture design.

Q: How would you describe your signature style?
I always describe my style as contemporary with a traditional twist, I have a huge passion for traditional and historic design, it has played such an important role in the evolution to where we are today. Living in London, I am surrounded by traditional and modern designs that stand alongside one another, I think this is where the passion has ultimately developed from.

Q: Who are your all-time favourite designers? 

Andre Fu, Tom Dixon, Paul Smith and Lee Broom are my top four designers. They have inspired much of my work and all contribute something very different to the industries that they are in.

Q: What does a typical day look like for you, in the world of design?

No two days are the same which makes it very exciting! Most of my days focus quite heavily on social media, building on my audience, listening to what they have to say and interacting is important for my brand. Much of the time I am interacting with brands, researching and discovering new content to write and show my readers!

Q: What do you like the most about what you do?

Working with brands and designers that I am incredibly passionate about. When you work on something that you enjoy doing, it doesn’t matter about how many hours or continuous days you work on it, every single second is enjoyable! (nearly every single second!!)

Q: What inspires you the most?

London as a place inspires me the most with it’s diversity and creative output, though I recently visited Italy and that has given me even more inspiration, it is great to see a culture’s contribution to design and how they all differ from one another.

Q: If you could own just one stand-out design piece, what would you choose?

One item that I instantly fell in love with from the moment I saw it was the LINLEY tectonic bar. The craftsmanship that has gone into this piece is unbelievable. I love to entertain and the tectonic bar would be the most impressive centrepiece that you could ever have in a dining space!

Q: What is your most treasured possession?

I feel that everyone says this, but my Mac is! It is essentially where Martyn White Designs was born and where it is controlled and develops from.

Q: Where’s your favourite place to be?

Manhattan! Such a vibrant and energetic city. If you cannot get it in New York, you cannot get it anywhere!

Q: If you had a time machine, what period of design would you like to live in?

I have always had an interest in Art Deco design, I would love to go back and experience the period as it happened.

Q: Can you tell us about a bathroom design that has really stood out to you, and why?

A hotel that I recently stayed at had a bathroom that was in a category of its own. It was a very traditional Italian bathroom that used lots of beautiful marble. Every single joint was perfect, every vein matched to the next, it was as if it was one seamless design with beautiful and luxurious fixtures and fittings. I could have looked at it for hours on end.

Q: What would your dream bathroom be like? 

Probably a contemporary take on the Italian bathroom, I absolutely love white marble so to have a bathroom full of it with contemporary fittings and a free standing bath would be my ultimate design.

Q: Complete this sentence – home is…

Home is a place to express yourself, experiment with design and share your passions.

All images credit to Martyn White Designs.