Greek born Interior designer Anna Perivolari joined Brio in February 2018 to specialise in creating bespoke and beautiful designs that reflect the vibrancy and style of our retirement living brand.
Anna has a Master’s degree in interior design from the Glasgow School of Art and a Bachelor’s degree in Interior Architecture, Decorative Arts and Design from the Technological Educational Institute of Athens.
Anna has showcased a series of stylish designs for homes and communal spaces in our stunning developments in Chapelton and created a host of design concepts for our pending new projects spanning the UK too.
Here, Anna answers 5 key questions to give you a feel for the inspiration behind her design flair:
Q: Where do you gather your inspiration from when designing for retirement living?
My main source of inspiration is the local area, that’s why every project is different and unique. Aspects such as culture, landscape, natural environment and the architecture of a project’s immediate surroundings play important roles in the development of a concept. At Brio we are focused on creating a strong sense of place and community for all the homeowners that will make their new residence feel just like ‘home’.
Q: Do you approach designs for retirement living differently to other projects?
The design approach depends a lot on user experience research. For retirement living that entails accessible and dementia friendly design principles, as well as research on seniors’ preferences. We want people to be able to navigate easily to spaces and live in comfortable environments. That doesn’t mean that we have to compromise on style. Integrating current design trends and creating contemporary environments is a key part of the design process.
Q: Who is your biggest design inspiration?
I admire Patricia Urquiola for her imaginative designs. She uses colour and volume in unexpected ways. I also like how Sophie Patterson creates sophisticated environments by playing around with different textures and a neutral colour palette. Their style is very different but they both have a very distinctive design approach to get inspired.
Q: Where is the most beautiful room you have ever seen?
I was lucky enough to visit the Guggenheim museum in New York when a James Turrell exhibition was on. Standing in the rotunda of Frank Lloyd Wright’s building, looking to the spiral ramp changing colours was an overwhelming experience that challenged any perception of space, colour and light.
Q: What’s your favourite colour and texture and why?
I think that every colour and texture has its place when it’s well combined. However, I think that the muted earthy tones such as natural shades of soft blue, ochre and green palettes go well with neutrals and create all-time classic environments. For achieving a luxurious feel it’s a good combination with velvet fabrics and warm metallic textures such as bronze or brass details.