Q&A with famed designer Jacques Grange
December 2014
Right after Jacques Grange was awarded the Trophé Des Arts award by FIAF, I sat down with the world-renowned talent, who designed such splendid interiors for the likes of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, decorated the Château Gabriel, in Benerville-sur-Mer, in the style of In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. Those projects are supremely impressive, but Jacques Grange’s list of stellar clients doesn’t end there. French actress Isabelle Adjani, Princess Caroline of Monaco, Alain Ducasse, François Pinault, Robert Agostinelli, Valentino, and Karl Lagerfeld are also among his long list of clients. In the US, the designer provided the decoration of Paloma Picasso’s jewelry shop, and The legendary Mark Hotel on Madison Avenue, to name a few.
My first encounter with Jacques Grange began while I was working for famed photographer, and antique dealer, Roger Prigent. And so it was only natural that we began our conversation at his hotel suite in The Mark Hotel, reminiscing about our late friend, and the people surrounding him during the last years of his life. Mr. Grange noted how Mr. Prigent had a premonition that his career will blossom in the US, and deemed Mr. Prigent as “Top Hat”.
High End Weekly™: Looking back at your long and illustrious career as an interior designer, what does it mean to you to be awarded the Trophé Des Art?
Jacques Grange: Receiving an award can feel somehow abstract. However, being on the stage, and seeing my friends and colleagues brought a lot of warmth to the moment. As you know, during the evening, there was a video in which the actress Catherine Deneuve spoke about our friendship, and my career … That instant really touched me. Feeling the love of so many people who I hold dear made the difference, that love ultimately made the moment unforgettable. It was not so much about the trophy and its significance, but it was more about the people’s acknowledgement.
High End Weekly™: In an international scale, you have inspired a whole school of interior designers, taste makers, and creatives. What do you say to new designers who are entering the industry. In your opinion, how should they present their ideas to clients?
Jacques Grange: The interior designer should learn how to seduce the client by presenting fresh and creative ideas to the table. He or she must discover their own style. First of all, you have to Learn, Learn, Learn. Start your own vocabulary, and make it grow overtime. After that, you must become very honest with yourself, and above all, know who you are. The interior designer need to see design as a business, reinforce their design skils by building into them. It’s not easy, but it must be done that way. Also, the designer needs to ask himself some deep and personal questions, such as: Do I like design? How do I perceive it?
Building a design career is not just about having talents. Many people have talents, but the designer need to go further than that. The role of the designer is to imput psychology into their work, as well as showing respect to the clients. You need to convince them of your ideas, as well as to carefully listen to theirs. If you know who you are, you will have a successful career.
High End Weekly™: Your interiors are often described as eclectic, with an effortless elegance feel to them. Yet they are all carefully edited, constructed for fine living – in the most comfortable, and beautiful fashion. And so when you approach a project, what do you look for first?
Jacques Grange: Space and light. As well as analyzing carefully the way my clients live. The stories of their life are translated into the projects. As I mentioned previously, a designer need to consider and respect their clients’ lives. It is that simple.
High End Weekly™: I know that you like working with artisans in your projects. Here at The Mark Hotel, which you were commissioned to designed back in 2008, you tapped a number of artists, including Ron Arad, Eric Schmitt, Paul Mathieu, and others. Since you are constantly in demand and traveling the world, do you often look for new talents?
Jacques Grange: Yes, absolutely. I’m always curious about new talents. And I love visiting all the great museums around the world, namely the ones in Chicago, and New York. I’m often looking at who the museums are introducing to the public, because normally, their taste level is high-end. When it comes to art, I like to see the quality of the art in these institutions, because when I visit the antique dealers in their galleries, I get to compare the quality. This is a fine reference for designing well, it is important for an interior designer to consider it.
High End Weekly™: During your travels, what do you look for in hotels when it comes to luxury?
Jacques Grange: The sound of silence in the bedroom. [Pause, and smiles]. Light and harmony. Comfort in every details. For example, the bathrooms at The Mark Hotel are simply marvelous. The details are what I look for because they are very important. A hotel should feel like a home away from home.
“Renovating The Mark Hotel was so exciting, but it had its challenges. The lobby is small for a hotel, and so when I designed the floors, I wanted to keep the public’s attention right there. The whole idea of the black and white striped floors was to keep people’s attention away from the ceiling, which is in fact, quite low.” Jacques Grange
This concludes Part I of II of our tête-à-tête with Jacques Grange at The Mark Hotel
