Assel Baimakhan On Interior Design: ‘Taste Is Not Cultural Or Gendered’

Behind every space is an evolving cultural story. Home is where the heart is, but also “my tech fortress”. Office is about efficiency and control as well as creativity and sustainability. From art exhibitions to fashion shows, any successful restaurant must excite us with more than cuisine. Populations gravitate towards cities and spend more time indoors. No wonder that interior design industry is projected to experience significant growth rate through 2025. The generation of “post-global citizens” demands subtle intercultural complexity and new design stars rise to the occasion. Among them is Assel Baimakhan, a young interior designer from Kazakhstan whose award-winning projects have generated buzz among the notoriously selective clients in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. With busy offices in Almaty and Dubai, she has just opened a studio in New York answering the call of the interior design market in the United States, estimated at $15.8 billion last year. We connected to discuss how trend-watching is a dying art-form, whether taste can travel, and how fashion moves from the runways into the hallways and driveways.

“Back home” Baimakhan is a celebrity in her own right gracing covers of Kazakh magazines and winning at People Awards Kazakhstan. However, home is a flexible concept for an in-demand designer with concurrent projects on three continents. “I am in my own personal time zone,” she jokes before we manage to schedule an interview. Her story is a classic of being in the right place at the right time with the right skills. A top graduate with degree in architecture, she began on large construction projects in Almaty and Nur-Sultan (formerly, Astana) when the presidential mandate was to create “Global. Smart. City.” The challenging work was rewarding as she was learning fast on the job: hotels, shopping malls, official venues. Following her love of furniture, in 2008 she opened a small showroom in Dubai. “I thought my business was a failure, at first. Most clients were not buying things but asking to connect with manufacturers for custom pieces. They’d show me their place and ask to suggest something special.” She recognized the opportunity and committed to interior design full-time. A decade later, her work is regularly featured in professional media. Just this month, it leads the pages of Russia’s Salon magazine and Spain’s Mi Casa.

How do you approach work with clients from different cultures?

Assel Baimakhan: You talk to them, a lot. [Laughs] It’s all about curiosity. I learned so much working and living in Dubai. It feels like the capital of the world. You have meetings with an Arab firm in the morning, a French family in the afternoon, Russian developers in the evening. Everyone has unique backgrounds and common needs. A good interior designer is a good listener. The idea of “British” style or “Indian” style is moving into the past. Eclectic is the new norm, because people travel more. They see more online. Design of the future brings different elements together, not separates one over another.

You find clients are savvier about interior design in the age of Pinterest?

Assel Baimakhan: Yes and no. We have access like never before. For example, #InteriorDesign hashtag on Instagram has millions and millions of images. Do you need to see them all?! People sometimes show me screenshots and say: “This!” Then I ask them about their budget. [Laughs] I ask about the wiring and the tubing inside their walls. Who will use the space and how? Then, we have new materials on the market all the time. Is this the best aesthetical and the most practical solution? With my construction background I can also argue back when someone tells me something is “impossible.” Education and experience is why you hire an interior designer.

Baimakhan tells a story about a project that began with a dream of a spiral glass stairwell. After several builders insisted on simplifying her vision, she stepped up and stepped in as an architect to ensure everything worked out as intended. “I never offer an idea I am not sure how to deliver.” In another instance, she had to design lighting fixtures from scratch when an extensive search did not produce desired results. To social media she prefers surfing trade fairs around the world. Ambiente lifestyle and décor show in Frankfurt, Maison & Objet exhibition in Paris, and the iconic Salone del Mobile in Milan are among the unmissable dates on her annual agenda. “If you’re not coming to Milan, you are just not serious about this profession,” she quips. Her idea of Snapchat or TikTok is monitoring progress on the webcams installed at her design sites.

Are design trends relevant anymore?

Assel Baimakhan: Clients will tell you they don’t care about “trends”. Then they will tell you all about this amazing bathroom in a new hotel they stayed at. [Laughs] I never had a client ask specifically for something in Pantone “color of the year”, but we are all aware when something does not look “fresh.” Design is everywhere at all times. Fast fashion leads in visual trends. People respond quicker to fashion. In interiors we also work with shades and moods. Can this be softer? Let’s try that darker.

Does fashion influence interior design?

Assel Baimakhan: Recently someone requested Laura Biagiotti textiles. It is not unusual. Many premium brands offer home décor. We’ve used some items from Missoni, Roberto Cavalli, Gianfranco Ferré collections in projects. But fashion branding is so strong. You must be a real fan to have a branded room or live in a branded house. Luxury is also a question of budget. You want a Bentley library? It will cost a Bentley price. We see stronger desire for such home showmanship in newly emerging countries.

Are there really distinct differences in taste in different cultures?

Assel Baimakhan: Taste is not cultural or gendered. Not all Russians want gold. Not all women want pink. You learn to forget such stereotypes. People want functional homes that are cozy. Some people rely on bigger brands for value. Europeans and Americans trust interior designers more, because there it is a common practice with longer history. I often work with first generation clients. Taste takes time.

Timing is once again on her side for Baimakhan’s stateside adventure. While new construction is slowing across the USA, home makeovers are entering collective imagination and breaking market records. According to Harvard Center for Housing Studies, home remodeling expenditures have been steadily growing since the 2008 recession. Coupled with the diversifying population and its multicultural sensitivities, interior designers with international experience will be making their mark on private and public spaces in America. I am excited to see what new stories they will tell.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.