As the professionals at Champalimaud Design will tell you, “Good design begins with an exceptional story.” And they’ve dedicated themselves to telling it. With a portfolio that includes international projects spanning from residences and hotels to restaurants, spas, and office buildings, their service to discerning clients is simple—to deliver designs of distinction. Recognized for visionary concepts and a keen ability to infuse spaces with modernity while maintaining integrity, character, and sense of place, Champalimaud helps each property achieve its full potential, and The Kent’s Upper East Side residences are no exception. Their beautiful interiors are a testament to this forward-thinking team’s imaginative reinvention.

The team is grounded in the aesthetic principles of Alexandra Champalimaud, firm founder and driver of the entire creative process. Alexandra received her early education in Switzerland and England and trained in design at Espirito Santo Foundation in Lisbon, Portugal. Informed by personal experiences and professional commissions that have taken her to six continents, her work has uncommon depth, dotted with subtle references to a diverse range of influences. However, what you won’t find is any pretense. Intellectually curious by nature and possessing an unrivaled ability to find the right placement of textures and color, she applies classical design concepts in ways that preserve and celebrate the cultural aspects of each project and client.

She’s known to eschew the mundane while still innately understanding the beauty of certain universals and needs: honoring the small details of what people truly want, she once invoked the example of fresh, perfectly ironed sheets as a detail that is instinctively and absolutely divine to just about anyone. When it comes to spaces, she prioritizes light—natural preferably—and “a sense of air: of space,” as she describes it. Within The Kent, that has translated to clean lines and malleable but clearly defined gallery areas, large corner windows with views of the open expanse of the city, and elevated ten- to fifteen-foot ceilings. This is the “magnificence and unparalleled elegance that defines the Upper East Side,” as she sees it, “inspired by the richness, eclecticism, and boldness of the art deco style, refined with modern aestheticism."

It all adds up to being a true visionary in interior design, with a professional pedigree that parallels her efforts. Her reputation and acumen made her a natural fit to serve on the board of the Commissions des Biens Culturels du Québec and as a past vice-president of the US-Portugal Chamber of Commerce. In 2000, she was awarded the Platinum Circle for Lifetime Achievement by Hospitality Design. In 2009, the magazines Hospitality Design and Hotels celebrated her with their Interior Designer of the Year award. In 2012, Alexandra’s vast contributions to pushing the boundaries of her craft were recognized with induction into the Interior Design Hall of Fame.