SHOW STOPPER
With the Wow!house event coming in June, we take a sneak peek at Tolù Adèkó’s bedroom design . .
INTERIOR designer Tolù Adè. kó. takes a holistic approach to design, collaborating with many makers to create timeless and contemporary schemes. Nothing is done by mistake; every facet of every project is chosen for a reason – to tell a unique story. It’s this approach that he is taking to Wow!house, which runs from 4 June to 4 July at the Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour. For this year’s show, the Nigerian-british tastemaker has collaborated with Zimmer + Rohde on the bedroom design but, not one to sit still, Tolù is also championing the charity partnership with United in Design, the charity founded in 2020 to address the lack of diversity within the interior design industry.
Tolù is the son of textile designers and has long been fascinated by textures, finishes and diverse types of weaves, embroideries and print techniques so the paring with the family-run German textile manufacturers seems like a perfect match. ‘The founders [of Zimmer + Rohde] travelled the world looking for artisan mills and designers creating lavishly decorated and hand embroidered fabrics which tell a story,’ he explains. ‘What we’ve done with this project is put together what is an elegant bedroom scheme but one that showcases many different artisan skills and finds many different applications to show off the wonderful fabrics. It’s going to be quite a surprise for visitors.’
Much of the furniture has been designed and upholstered using artisans from within a 10-mile radius of Adè.kó. & Co’s base in Greenwich. ‘The studio lies at the heart of the Design District so I wanted to highlight the amount of talent there is in south London. It’s important to magnify this idea of design and community.’
This approach resonates with the work of the charity United in Design, which partners with companies to establish apprenticeships for young people from black, Asian and other ethnic monitories interested in going into the industry. ‘We’re trying to open up interior design and find a place for everyone,’ says Tolù.
A SPECIAL EVENT: MONDAY 17 JUNE
Join us and Martin Moore for a cookery class in the brand’s kitchen at the Design Centre’s Wow!house 2024. More details to follow in our June issue.