House Style: André Fu

André Fu is one of Asia’s most sought-after interior architects, with a global portfolio. His projects bridge the gap between cultures, drawing on European principles of beauty as well as Oriental traditions. He has created furniture for Louis Vuitton’s Objets Nomades collection, designed contemporary art galleries in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Shanghai, and worked on hotels and restaurants including Villa La Coste in Provence, The Berkeley in London, the St Regis Hong Kong and Hotel the Mitsui in Kyoto. He has a retail boutique, André Fu Living, in Hong Kong.

Where do you live?
I live in a duplex apartment in Hong Kong’s Southside, with a poetic 270-degree oceanfront view from Deep Water Bay to Repulse Bay. The reason I chose it? The airy double-height volume – and the vast terrace!

What’s the style of your home?
My apartment is a true reflection of my design aesthetic – simple and honest, with a sense of relaxed luxury. The main challenge lies in keeping a degree of intimacy within the vast open space, especially on the lower living-room level. I have invested in wide-plank oak flooring and a museum-level lighting system, which allows me to evolve the way I display the objects within the space over time.

Do you have a signature design style – in your home and in your work?
I use the term “relaxed luxury” to communicate my personal belief in the lifestyle experience people are striving for these days. Personally, I love Bauhaus architecture and midcentury-modern furniture.

Are there any pieces of art on your hit list?
I admire the paintings of Mark Rothko – they are captivating and highly immersive.

Are there any furniture or textile designers you particularly admire?
I love the work of Hans Wegner, Gio Ponti and Eileen Gray. The architect Mies van der Rohe and designers Jean-Michel Frank and Christian Liaigre have influenced me hugely.

Do you have any original art in your home?
I have a small collection of artwork and sculpture – some Antony Gormley and artisan pieces by Claude Lalanne.

If you could save only one object from a fire, what would it be?
A painting by the Korean artist Park Seo-bo – it is so dynamic, yet minimal in expression.

Is there any one property you’d like the chance to redesign?
I’d love to work on the Parco dei Principi hotel in Sorrento – a property that’s the essence of Gio Ponti’s aesthetics. It would be a magical opportunity to capture it in a contemporary context.

Which of your clients’ homes have you loved working on?
I rarely design private homes, but one person I have worked for is [the actor] Michelle Yeoh – she was one of my first clients.

Give us three words to describe your personal style?
Modern, elegant, relaxed. My design philosophy is about provoking new ways of considering what luxury means.

And what’s the most unusual request a client has made?
There are many times we have been entrusted with interesting challenges – for example, creating a classic Waldorf Astoria interior in a contemporary skyscraper.

Andre Fu Studio

Pictures from top: designer André Fu; Hotel the Mistui in Kyoto; Mark Rothko, No 9 (Dark Over Light Earth, Violet and Yellow in Rose), 1954, oil on canvas, on display in the MOCA Gallery, Los Angeles (Alamy); a light-filled space designed by Fu