Olga Polizzi

The Style: Olga Polizzi is mainly concerned with 'comfort and common sense design', not hopping aboard the latest design trends train. Polizzi's approach to each hotel is to reflect its surroundings as opposed to having a signature style that is carried through all her projects. Polizzi likes to capture the essence of a hotel's location and bring it into the design of the rooms. The Augustine in Prague, for example, was refurbished by Polizzi who kept key historic features of the monastery whilst still incorporating all the the luxuries that make a five star hotel. "I think you have to have a sense of fun in design. It gets a little boring if you take it too seriously", she says. Polizzi wants to give the hotel guests an immediate sense of place by using locally sourced materials, furniture and art work. Reflecting local culture is at the core of her designs. One of her independent projects is the recently opened Verdura Resort in Sicily, a collaboration between Polizzi and architect Flavio Albanese, is a lesson in the art of stone.