Signature Luxury Travel & Style
THOMAS HAMEL
Be inspired by one of the world’s leading interior designers.
American-born interior designer Thomas Hamel was living in New York when he fell in love with Sydney on his first visit in 1989. He decided to stay. “It was that feeling of light and space and air, and I loved it that Australians were so open to new ideas,” he explains. “All the people I met had travelled widely or had lived and worked in various parts of the world. They had a true global perspective.”
Born in Virginia, USA, where the colonial city of Williamsburg and small towns have beautifully preserved Georgian architecture, Hamel was interested in history from a young age and attributes his love of antiques and fine craftsmanship to growing up surrounded by beauty and tradition.
He studied in New York and London where he obtained degrees in Interior Design before securing a coveted position with Parish-Hadley Associates in New York.
“Sister Parish and Albert Hadley defined American style at that time and the company was considered a finishing school for American interior designers.”
In 1990 Hamel opened his own design firm in Sydney, Thomas Hamel & Associates. The company now employs 26 people including architects and specialist furniture designers. There’s also an office in Los Angeles.
“About 30 per cent of my work is in Melbourne and I could easily open another office there,” he says.
His ideal commission is one where he can work on concepts with the owners and their architect from the very beginning.
Glamorous upbringing
A major project for a Melbourne family with architect Russell Casper is a perfect example. The brief was to make this large residence warm and inviting but at the same time to create spaces that were impressive for entertaining large groups.
The dining room features three square dining tables that each seat eight guests and can be joined to make one big table seating 24. The glamorous black and cream chairs are from J. Robert Scott in Los Angeles. Natural mulberry wallpaper panels made in Seattle give the impression of soft parchment or stone. The imposing painting, ‘The Fire’, is by Leonard French from his Fire & Rain Series.
The indoor swimming pool was “a challenge” says Hamel. “The owners wanted a level of detail equal to the rest of the house.” This was achieved with glass-lined walls and a custom-made banquette at one end.
Arresting metal sculptures of divers in flight by Australian artist Charles Rocco give the pool house the feeling of an art gallery.
Melbourne stately
Another favourite commission in Melbourne, a city known for its elegant entrances, enabled Hamel and architects Rosenthal Munckton & Shields to design a graceful staircase inspired by one in the 1830s mansion, Elizabeth Bay House.
The slender balustrade and pale stone are enhanced by the rich aubergine colour of the walls. Antique Belgian limestone and granite used in the checkerboard pattern on the floor add graphic punch. The Chinoiserie-style lantern and an Aboriginal artwork by John Mawurndjul contribute an unexpected modern touch.
Bellevue estate
A highly cultured and musical family in Sydney had lived in Los Angeles and admired the big open living spaces and simplified Mediterranean style that is so appropriate to both cities. They had asked renowned architect Michael Suttor to design this sumptuous project in the Eastern Suburbs. It included a serious home theatre, a billiard room and several spaces where music could be performed.
Museum-quality antiquities have been carefully displayed in cool modern spaces. For example, an ancient Greek marble frieze of athletes sits above an Adam-style marble fireplace in a sitting room. A dark Art Deco cabinet further enhances the serene cream-painted room and the geometric painting by Gagik was found in New York.
Hamel says he is not interested in creating a brand although his sophisticated signature is unmistakable.
“Many of my clients know each other and they don’t want to see anything that is similar to their own in another’s house.
“We offer what I like to call ‘white glove service’. It’s extremely personal and discreet and includes every detail of the project.”
Last year Hamel with his creative director Dylan Farrell launched a new business called Hamel + Farrell for Jean de Merry. It designs beautiful modern pieces that are crafted in America. A limited selection of tables, lamps and storage pieces are pitched as “couture objects that will become heirlooms for future generations”.