In André Fu’s world, simplicity is a luxury that’s hard-fought and even harder to come by. For over a decade the Hong Kong-born, Cambridge-educated architect has been plying his unique vision of “relaxed luxury”: personified in welcoming, residence-like spaces of abundant light, comfort and ease.

Fu’s portfolio of work differs considerably in tone and scope – he has designed everything from a two-bedroom suite at The Berkeley, to an entire resort surrounding the Chȃteau La Coste – but in Asia that legacy remains inexorably connected with The Upper House: a lofty, award-winning hotel that doubled as his debut in luxury hospitality and an abstract of the powerfully universal tenets that remain pertinent to his design practice (AFSO) today.

 

André Fu in a quiet corner of his Central Hong Kong office.

 

Fresh from the traditional Mid-Autumn holiday last year, we dropped by Fu’s studio to talk about his professional obsession with good design (or more accurately, how that seemingly straightforward concept conveys itself in ways that go beyond the superficial). Meanwhile – in a conversation of unrivalled length and candour – the prodigious Hong Kong designer opens up about the joys of drawing; offers insights into several recent key projects; extols his fondness for the Staatliches Bauhaus; and explains his ongoing friendship with Louis Vuitton.   

 

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