Dawson Design Associates have been Shortlisted for Hotel Under 200 Rooms – The Americas in The International Hotel & Property Awards 2021. Read more about Founding Principal Andrea Sheehan below:

---

Name:  Andrea Sheehan
Company:  Dawson Design Associates
Position within company: Founding Principal
Website:   Dawsondesignassociates.com

Tell us a little about your background in design (education, experience, etc)

DDA is a 34 year old company founded in 1987 specializing in hospitality.   I am the founding principle and started as a young  nightclub and restaurant designer just out of art college.  We have been at the forefront of the USA Boutique/Lifestyle hotel movement working with Kimpton Hotels as a long term client starting in the early 90’s. We designed the first Kimpton Hotel on the east coast of the USA in 2001.   Our small team of 16 split between Seattle and Brighton UK is comprised of designers, architects and artists from 10 different countries with our core goal being to share different perspectives and celebrate diversity as creatives.  We consider ourselves’ storytellers’, and our projects are always narrative driven.  Our goal is to trigger meaningful conversations by designing spaces that engage and captivate our guests on an intellectual level.

How would you describe your personal interior design style?

 Bold and artistic. We see ourselves as artists and our spaces as interactive venues. We architecturally fold our interiors around pieces of powerful and expressive art selected or commissioned to put forward  a  specific visual  question to our guests. Relevant and sometimes controversial;  the question is always direct and intentional.    We design in a choreographed manner with the sole intent to actively engage our participants interactively so it becomes a personal experience instead of that of an  passive observer.  Our goal is simply to begin conversations and share experiences and stories.  The energy of the space depends upon the emotional connection we make with our guests. The richness depends on the stories.

We have been experimenting with this genre for several years and have found that our guests really appreciate being included into what can be both powerful and relevant, though sometimes uncomfortable conversations.   Topics of chaos of technology, racism, gender rights, gay rights, sustainability or sometimes just simply romance.  We want to be  a conduit putting the questions forward to start conversations and get to know about other people’s perspective.  Our clients in turn have discovered that their customers are willing to spend more money for that original experience which is essential for us to be given the freedom to design the way we do. Our clients  success is our success.

Where does your design inspiration come from?

People and places that have great stories to tell.  Something that makes me stop and turn and want to investigate further. Then share. I travel extensively and my team is comprised of people from so many interesting cultures and places. It is a powerful experience.  Our collective design approach and originality is due to the diversity of their own life experiences and their own personal gaze. It is from the sharing of perspectives that we get our strongest ideas. At DDA everyone gets to share in the concept development.  It is a kaleidoscope of ideas.

In what direction do you feel that design is moving towards in a general sense?

I think people are tired of superficiality. Just another pretty face seems boring when there are so many interesting and dynamic ideas to share and discover. People want to make the most of their experiences and their limited time with more and more of them wanting to explore and discover the layers below the surface.  My personal opinion is that people are bored with the conventional approach to design. We see a thirst for originality and a sense of discovery.  They themselves want to express their own uniqueness and are looking for spaces that allow them to do this freely and safely. We  already had felt  a shift happening before Covid. The Me Too Movement was a key indicator. Covid lit a fire.  People have had time to think about what it is they really want. Most just want to be themselves.  Design always reflects Society and we are different now. Less inhibited and far more aware. That is what I feel that people want to see in Design.

Name five key themes to consider when approaching design in 2020 and beyond.

Originality, Art, Socially Relevant, Socially Responsible, Fun.

If you could offer one piece of advice when it comes to interior design schemes, what would it be?

Break the rules. Innovation is in high demand. There are no rules in real design so just experiment but never lose sight of your clients goals.  With the right clients you can do both.  Never forget that they are your Patrons and always include them in the process if possible.   Don’t get caught up in projecting an image of what other’s want to see.  Authenticity is a really valuable asset in business.

How important are The International Hotel & Property Awards as recognition of talent and achievement?

I think it is very important. You reach a much more diverse market and have an international perspective. A global viewpoint is critical if one is competing internationally.

What projects are you currently working on?

We are creating Zena’s sister hotel in San Francisco. We have a new Z Collection Hotel in West Hollywood.

We are bringing the Margaritaville Hotel chain to the West Coast of the USA with  both a resort and urban hotel in San Diego. Quite a change for my team but really healthy.  We are also doing the One Hotel guestrooms and suites in San Francisco.

What was your favourite project to work on and why?

My next project.  I always like to raise the bar because I have a restless mind. I love the challenge. We are currently curating a million dollar collection of art commissioned by feminists located on the Pacific Rim from Australia to Japan to South America for this new  Z hotel in San Francisco..  We are calling it the ‘Ring of Fire’ collection and it is a celebration of those people who have fought for gender equality in these countries. We have a special collection from indigenous peoples as well.   As long as I can share a interesting story, I never get bored.

What was your most challenging project to work on and why?

The most challenging projects I work on is when a client treats their designers as vendors. As if we are all cut from the same cloth.  They want originality but in the end they decide that design by consensus is best.(Perhaps a colouring book would suffice?) They won’t take any risks just in case someone wont like it. For me, a client like this is like enduing Water Torture. Life is too short. I won’t name names ?

Which products/services could you not live without when designing?

The companies we like to work with are very flexible and they believe in quality. They like to work on projects that push themselves and their own team’s imaginations and capabilities. We are difficult because everything we do is intentional.  We detail everything and track every detail through installation. We have a network of companies we trust and use over and over again because they love the challenge and they love what we are trying to do with our projects. They are part of our team.  Case good fabricators, upholstery companies, theatrical fabricators, lighting manufacturers, carpet companies, signage companies.  We are dependent on them all. They have to want to see our vision or we fail.  For art installations I work hand in hand with Julie Coyle and her studio in San Francisco. They do an amazing job of executing our art installations.

What are your aims and goals for the next twelve months?

We are busy. We now have three small offices and would like to open a forth in Australia over the next two years. Then we would have a 24 hour team. We want to continue to build a talented,  international team and find those clients who want to invest in innovation; who share a passion for it.  

Final thoughts; tell us a little more about yourself and your daily inspirations:

I am 63 years old woman and always have known I was a creative.  My mother was a professional artist and I grew up with turpentine and oil paint on my clothes. I have been a hospitality designer and artist for 42 years. I was a single mom and built DDA while raising a daughter who is now a film maker in Hollywood. She and I have always travelled and explored the world as fellow storytellers and talking about ways to frame idea’s visually. We are currently writing a screen play together that she hopes to one day make into a feature. 

I still get excited about every new project DDA takes on and still act as the art director at DDA for all offices. I see myself as more of the Editor and Director.  My team brings the raw ideas that spur the vision.  They are very talented and never stop surprising me in their approach to visualizing our stories.  I enjoy coaching and training the next generation of designer and we developed our own DDA Grad School training program 15 years ago that we use to train every designer we hire, for their first 5 years

We look for designers who are sincerely  determined to reach international calibre. It is a tough gig but very pleasurable to watch the ones that thrive and grow. They inspire me and remind me of the struggles we all must go through to reach our true potential.  One day I hope to reach my own.

Your most treasured possession?

My daughter though  I suspect she might be unhappy with me calling her my possession. My next would be my flower gardens on my land. I have been joyfully planting and installing them for almost 30 years. I tend to create more projects for myself to relax. Cleary something a bit unhinged with that, I am certain.

Your favourite holiday destination?

New Zealand. I find it refreshingly simple and unpretentious. Solid in itself and values. It seems  like stepping back into another place in time when life was less complicated. Natural. I go almost every January and recharge my batteries. It rains there as well.

Your favourite hotel, restaurant & bar?

I will never tell.

Your favourite book, film & song?

That always changes but right now my favourite book is ‘When Cassandra Speaks: When Women Are the Storytellers, The Human Story.’  By Elizabeth Lesser

My favourite Film will always be Lord of the Rings. I am a sucker for Middle Earth.

Moonlight Sonata Beethoven. Always brings me to tears.

Your favourite food and drink/

A good New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and bowl of Green Lipped Muscles. In January.

Your favourite way to spend an afternoon?

Gardening

If you weren’t a designer, what would you be?

Fine artist full time

Anything else interesting?

That’s it. I am pretty one dimensional.

Dawson Design Associates

---

design et al only work with the world’s leading designers.

If you think you have what it takes to complete in The International Hotel & Property Awards, submit your application by clicking here.

How to Apply  /  The Categories