Name: Simone Micheli
Company: Simone Micheli Architectural Hero
Position within company: Architect / owner
Website: www.simonemicheli.com

. Tell us a little about your background in design
My architecture owes a lot to my cultural and educational background. Discussions and friendship with my mentors Giovanni Klaus Koenig and Giovanni Michelucci and the possibilities I had to meet and work with Bruno Zevi, totally influence my professional practise still today, although the contemporary society and context deeply and continuously change. I share Michelucci’s love for the sculptural solutions and the enveloping space as well as the all Italian attitude of the architect – craftsman; moreover my playful and colourful sinuous space may glimpse many of the basic elements of the organic architecture. Finally I undoubtedly subsumed Koenig’s intuition about industrial design – half rooted in reality and in the logic of entrepreneurship and half the fruit of creativity and of an ideal vision of man and the world. But I have to say that my mom’s and my dad’s teaching, professionally dealing with the art’s world, has been the most important for me.

. How would you describe your personal design style?
I define my architecture as sensorial. In my works you can clearly catch the desire to create spaces to meet the needs to re-discover yourself and the world through the senses. As the manifestation of our being cannot be separated from the perception, emotions and imagination I believe that it is necessary to highlight the connections between the human body and the architectural work, generating an integral and multisensorial approach that leads to the idea of an holistic architecture. I design places with the aim of making men feel comfortable, enjoying their time, living a pure aesthetic experience. My way of designing is together extremely poetic, strongly unique and deeply functional.

. Where does your design inspiration come from?
Everyday life is my poetic inspiration. Needs and desires of humans as they behave in their habitual actions are the starting points from which I reflect.
My design and my architecture move from the idea of solving problems which affects men. My inspiration for a new project develops day by day, watching my children growing up, assimilating content (and not only shape) of the things I have met travelling around the world; it develops from my deep love for life and happiness.

. In what direction do you feel that design is moving towards in a general sense?
I think that design is coming back to its roots. It is re-discovering its origin and its natural ways of being. The attention is focused on the quality of materials, their structure and their inner features. The will of clearly re-defining scopes and purposes of design and architecture is the starting point to came back to a pure and authentic design based on human needs, desires and feelings.

. Name five key themes to consider when approaching design in 2015 and beyond.
– Design as solution of human needs and desires.
– Design as a tank of feeling and emotions.
– Communication’s and storytelling’s abilities of design
– Qualitative design: design which is able to respect the surrounding environment, the structure of materials, the shape of ideas.
– Capability to combine traditional thoughts with future visions.
Those are the five fundamental key themes for the new approaches to design and they moreover are the themes that actually drive my architectural works.

. If you could offer one piece of advice when it comes to design, what would it be?
My advice is surely to be focused on the proper meanings and real purposes of objects and works. Being published on the first pages of magazines and newspapers doesn’t mean anything, good design deals with quality of materials, satisfaction of users, money savings.

. How important are The International Hotel and Property Awards as recognition of talent and achievement?
They have great importance as they identify and reward the excellence inside the hospitality world. Their recognition is internationally known and it is a symbol of high quality and remarkable success.

. Final thoughts; tell us a little more about yourself
Your favourite holiday destination?
I don’t have a favourite holiday destination, I have to admit that when I want to relax any place surrounded by the sea for me is perfect!
Your favourite book?
It’s hard for me to say which is my favourite book, this summer I read a lot and Umberto Eco’s “On the history of Ugliness” is very interesting. Of course I enjoyed also Koenig’s book ” Il design è un pipistrello 1/2 topo 1/2 uccello”.
Your favourite drink?
Martini white with ice
Your favourite way to spend an afternoon?
I love to spend afternoons with my family: my wife and my wonderful sons Cesar and Jalel.
If you weren’t a designer, what would you be?
Undoubtedly a professional traveller!