Andrés Alsina is a
gentleman who has found that there is indeed life after fashion and that
reinvention is the key to longevity and success if one can find the correct
path to travel. He is an equestrian, a sportsman, a bon vivant, an international
interior designer, a clothes horse, an ex-model, an author of 3 books, a teacher
and most of all he is quite genuine with little to no artifice about him.
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| art by Marc Antoine Coulon |
Andrés Alsina took his love of fashion and redirected
it to another area of fashion but this time it was in the home, so to speak,
and not on the runways of Europe. He is proof positive that good taste is
genetic and that life does create divergent yet overlapping paths but it is up
to us to choose the right one. After several conversations with this unique
man, it occurred to me that he is without pretense and very open and
forthcoming about himself, his life and his career. Within the world of fashion
and any creative endeavor, those are qualities that have become increasingly rarefied as so many opt to throw up walls of pretense to conceal their shortcomings.
It is my opinion that all of his sterling qualities
and particular talents are communicated via his own words:
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Jeffrey Felner: How did you arrive at the decision
to become an interior designer and why?
Andrés
Alsina: I am a very pragmatic person. The first time a magazine published where
I lived, it was a small flat full of stripes and soon people began to call me
asking prices of the furniture. When I realized that the profit of a
Chesterfield sofa was three times that of a runway walk or a written article, I
became an interior designer. No mysterious secret, I was not gifted or touched
by the aura of aesthetics. It’s kinda weird, because I don’t define myself as only
being an interior designer. I feel I'm much more of a writer or a teacher than
a decorator. Fame and notoriety came in this decision besides it’s never late
to reinvent ourselves. Take for example Andreé Putman, the French mogul of
contemporary interiors, who was a piano teacher until her 50th anniversary. I
like the idea of being unclassified even if that’s not very commercial, but
it’s attractive. I mean, look at me, finally what is Alsina all about; a
decorator, a writer, a teacher, a travel guy, all of that together, or nothing
specifically?
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JF: Can you describe your personal style and your
interior design style?
AA: My
personal style is a mix between the preppy American east coast and certain Italian
codes of sartoriale, nothing exceptional, but it works for me. When I was
twenty many international designers such as Issey Miyake, Thierry Mugler and
Claude Montana wanted to dress me very over the top. It was good
publicity for them and there was that sense neo romantic of the eighties that
we were part of fashion evolution. Amazing when you are young, but as you get
older you search for simplicity and being more anonymous yet stylish while you
walk the street.
As for the seal (signature) that defines
my work as interior designer, that is far more complicated. Part of me works as
a revisionist, updating classic French or Gustavian styles. But since I mixed
those periods with strong and pure colors and some art deco lines, I feel I
recreate a whole new label on interiors. I'm very eclectic, in the tradition of
David Hicks, for me the ultimate designer of modern glamour. You can love or
hate my work, too fresh for the conservatives, too maximalist for modern
architects. But I have a seal, and I feel proud of that.
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JF: How and why did you select your current home?
AA: I really
believe in luck. I was doing internet researches, with only one idea on my
mind and that was I will like to live surrounded by French classic architecture
and golden grids but I say Andrés, forget Paris, is too expensive. I tried with
the city of Nancy, which had one of the most spectacular squares in Europe, but
no answer to my inquiries. One day I woke up and I had an email saying “Do
you want to live at Versailles?” As much I adore Versailles I prefer to decline
the idea, knowing the little bit too bourgeois society of the area, but when
they said to me it was in a building, Le Hotel du Garde Meuble, which is part
of the palace, I was like “WHAT? Is it possible to live in a sort of building
overlooking the gardens of the most famous palace in the world?” Well, actually
was just in front of the fountains of the Dragon and Neptune?
So yes, I wanted and three months later, here I am.
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JF: What is the most exciting project you have worked on
and why?
AA: In 1998,
with a luggage of hopes but no money, I established myself at the Loire Valley.
Passion and dedication took care of the rest. For almost five years the
restaurant and Tea room Le Jardin Secret,
first in Tours and then a franchise in a luxury hotel in South America, gave me
both international recognition and reputation. I remember one day having lunch
with an absolutely convinced Carolina Herrera who said "Andrés, you have
to open that concept in New York, it will be so successful" .She even gave
me her cell number to reach set up) for me some appointments at the Big
Apple, but after 9/11 the moment was not propitious.
Besides Le Jardin Secret I always had
said I will build my empire within only 30 meters. I'm sure there are hundreds
of interior designers that earn much more money, but I'm not sure they
will transcend. I feel I'm much more a taste maker than a rock star in the
tradition of Starck, Wearstler or Marino.
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JF: if you could invite any 5 people to dinner, who would
they be and why?
AA: Well
that’s quite a smart question. I've always believed that guests are an
extension of our personality and depths of excellence and talent.
As a new Frenchie, one must be Inés de la
Fressange, of course. No woman in this country exhales more than her, the truly
allure and panache of the real Parisienne. She is so Left Bank, so elegant in a
non-structure sense. With Inés, elegance is certainly a matter of bones.
Stephen Daldridge definitely as
I'm sure that a man who directs Billy Elliot, The Hours and The Reader, is kind
of extraterrestrial. I would have so many questions to ask him, oh my God,
I'm sure he would hate me, but how he has accomplished his career is something
overwhelming.
Any real influential New Yorker. I just adore New York, but in absence
of friends and relatives there (ex-lovers, no offense, Hahaha) there is always
that very upper crust, Upper Eastside, that I barely think reflects the real
spirit of the city. I would love to hear people from the Village, Brooklyn
Heights or The Bowery.
For past beauty and nostalgia, I would be fascinated with the
presence of Faye Dunaway. She ruled the 70s being part of a very important
American new wave of writers and directors (Tennessee Williams, William Alfred,
Kazan, Lumet, Penn, and Pollack). You know, Jeffrey, I met Dunaway when I was
twelve in Barcelona, and I never recovered of that first impression of seeing
her. She was stunning, with the beauty, class and elegance of the old ladies
(Dietrich or Garbo). We don’t see women like her anymore. For me she is the
epitome of intelligent beauty.
Last but not least, I will like to have on my table Tom Ford as he, most
of all, could be the moderator of the night. That man is a real know-it-all. I
love his legacy on fashion, his directorial debut on A Single Man, the way he
sophisticates everything he touches. From Julianne Moore to trashy icons, he
does miracles and so with Tom on my table I would be happy being just a waiter,
serving good meal and wines, while I listen mouth open.
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Indeed, that will be my dream
table!!! Absolutely.
