THE INTERVIEW | MASTERS & MUSES | CABANA MAGAZINE
Maltese-born interior designer Francis Sultana sits down with Cabana to share his dream (and nightmare) interiors, favorite fabrics, career highlights, guilty pleasures, greatest challenges and much more.
INTERVIEW BY CAMILLA FRANCES | MASTERS & MUSES | 9 DECEMBER 2024
Francis’s rug collection for Galerie Diurne, © Galerie Diurne.
The most memorable trip I’ve taken...
I was on a yacht, sailing around the Caribbean, when I first discovered Mustique - we were meant to go for dinner at a friend's house and ended up mooring there for six days. I love Mustique and have returned many times to stay on the island since. It remains one of the most wonderful destinations for me. It feels so hidden away from the world and is the one place I get to rest, design and truly unwind.
The best party I’ve ever been to...
It was about 25 years ago, at the Royal Academy of Arts, London. It was a Venetian fancy dress party - I've always loved Venice and I certainly do remember the party. I had to go to Angels, the costumiers, to get my outfit and everyone really made an effort. The outcome was so spectacular that it has stayed with me ever since.
A moment that defined or changed my career...
When I began working at David Gill Gallery I had to put my dream to become an interior designer on hold. I met Yana Peel (global head of arts and culture at Chanel) through a mutual dear friend and she asked me to design the interior of her house in London and this really set me on my true career, with my own interior design atelier. It was a pivotal moment for me.
The greatest challenge I’ve overcome...
I was once the understudy designer to Jacques Granges working on a house in Hydra (the contents of which recently sold at Sotheby's in Paris). The house was only accessible by donkey and cart and we had pieces by Lalanne, Mattia Bonetti and Andre Debreuil, as well as my own pieces. It was an unbelievably difficult job logistically but we managed it. I don't think I have ever had such a challenging job since, but the result was stunning, and the house was quite legendary. Noone could believe what we achieved, a great vision of the patron and all the wonderful work we commissioned together. A tour de force in the style ‘orientalist'!
Francis’s set at Albany, London, © Simon Upton.
An object I would never part with...
I have a chair that was designed by Emilio Terry in the 1920s for Carlos de Beistegui whose penthouse was designed by Le Corbusier. The juxtaposition of such baroque pieces of furniture in such a minimalist interior was very profound for me and the apartment was a huge inspiration for me growing up. The chair became somewhat of an obsession of mine - I stumbled across it by accident, in a shop window in Paris, and so I stood outside and waited for the antique dealer to return from lunch and bought it there and then. I would never part with it.
The best gift I’ve ever received...
Well, you know, it's never about the value, it's always about the sentiment...
My guiltiest pleasure or greatest extravagance...
Eating caviar on baked potatoes - very delicious and very decadent.
My next weekend-away destination...
Amsterdam - I love it there. It's like a mini New York, it's so friendly and the whole atmosphere is very special, a bit like Venice, maybe it's the water...but there is something very cool about that city.
I would describe my childhood as...
I grew up on the island of Gozo, next to Malta. It was a bit like the film, Il Postino - a simple mediterranean village, with a piazza and baroque church - idyllic. I was lucky.
My favourite flea market or antiques fair...
Alfie's Antiques - it always has something there: interiors, accessories, fashion. Whenever I have friends staying in London I take them and they are like children in a candy store - it's such a treasure trove. You never know what you will find there.
Poston Court in Herefordshire designed by Francis Sultana © Paul Massey.
I feel most confident when wearing...
I love Tom Ford - the heyday of 50s Hollywood glamour, the narrative of elegant men's silhouettes, the brand suits me. I have been going to the same tailors Anderson & Sheppard since my 20s and my shirts come from Turnbull and Asser. I don't really go anywhere else; I know what suits me and these three brands always make me feel great. I also have a passion for vintage mid-century cufflinks.
My signature scent...
Santa Maria Novella Melograno Eau de Cologne, which I have worn since I was 19 - I never change. It is a complete classic and apparently all about good luck, which is fortunate! I also love candles by Cire Tudron: Cire for creativity, Ernesto I also love, and Solis Rex, and I have recently discovered Versailles.
My go-to recipe...
A traditional sunday roast. I love entertaining and I adore cooking - there is something so welcoming about a great sunday roast. Whether I am in London or Malta, I change the meat to suit the weather and the vegetables are always seasonal. Tthere is always a pudding too - homemade pistachio or stracciatella gelato are the best! I adore ice cream, it must be my Maltese childhood.
My all-time favourite fabric...
It's a silk velvet by VeraSeta called Vendome. I have used it many times and in many colors and it's both timeless and elegant.
The person I call for good advice...
David Gill or Yana Peel. David always says to me, try not to work too hard. I'm not sure I have listened to him enough!
The person I call for a good time...
Mark Francis Vandelli - I am always so busy with work, I spend too much time travelling these days and so I have to decline many invitations, however when I do have a moment spare then I know that Mark will always know exactly where to go and he will ensure that I always have a good time.
Hotel La Palma, © Oetker Collection.
My dream dinner party companion...
The designer Jean Michel Frank. He was a visionary in interior design in Paris in the 1920s, creating interiors and furniture as part of the same story. He created interiors for Guerlain and for Louis Aragon amongst many others. He tragically committed suicide, and I would love to have met him.
An artwork or exhibition that took my breath away...
Flora Yukhnovich at the Wallace Collection. Her work is extraordinary - I am lucky to own some, and I just adore her contemporary take on Rococo. She really is a genius and her work at the Wallace Collection alongside Boucher was inspirational.
Ideal interiors in three words...
Casually Sophisticated Chic.
A new artist or designer whose work excites me...
Artist Doron Langberg at Victoria Miro Gallery - I love his work, it is shockingly beautiful. Also, fine jeweller Emmanuel Tarpin is someone whose work I discovered and am lucky to be showing at David Gill Gallery later this month. I also love the work of Harris Reed for fashion.
Just One More Thing
One Master: Carlos de Beistegui
One Muse: Elsa Schiaparelli
One City: Venice
One Artwork: Spider by Louise Bourgeois
One Book: Other Voices Other Names, Truman Capote
One Museum: Victoria & Albert Museum
One Shop: Fortnum and Mason
One Song: The Power of Love, Frankie Goes to Hollywood
One Color: Pale Blue
One Flower: Arum Lilly
One Word to describe your Style: Me
One Word to describe Cabana: Belezza
the edit
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