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This up-and-coming London designer’s passions include liveable, adaptable spaces and bold, cinema-inspired colours
Who is she?
Studio George, based in Camberwell, was set up in 2021 by George Townsin. A spirit of adventure is integral to her story: in her late twenties, she swapped a successful career as a TV producer for interior design, upping sticks to Melbourne to get her diploma. ‘There are plenty of transferable skills between those industries –client services, creative briefs, budgets and timelines – so one prepared me well for the other,’ she says. On her return to the UK, Townsin worked for acclaimed decorator Suzy Hoodless, and she advanced quickly.
Numerous requests from friends to design their homes convinced her it was time to set up her own practice, where she’s influenced by Italian design (‘going right back to Roman architecture – I’m a history nerd’), cinema (she loves Pedro Almodóvar’s use of colour and Shona Heath’s set designs) and Sir Terence Conran. ‘He mastered that timeless, lived-in look, which I try to emulate on my projects,’ she says. ‘I’m not bound to any particular style, but telling clients’ stories is a thread in all of my work, and I always create comfortable spaces. I love bold colour, an eclectic mix of styles and elements of surprise.’
What are her recent projects?
The studio’s first new-build project, a ‘forever home’ in Suffolk. Surrounded by fields and enjoying glorious countryside views, it’s an open-plan space with a double-height entrance. ‘The interior was inspired by the landscape, with a burnt-orange kitchen that echoes local sunsets, and soft blues and pinks borrowed from the sky and from the pampas grass in the fields,’ Townsin explains. ‘I chose a mix of contemporary and antique furniture, including inherited pieces, which tells the family’s story and adds warmth.’
