Starboard
Having been tasked with envisioning both a train and a sailing ship for Orient Express, the French architect discusses the change in pace from designing on land to designing on water.
« Since day one, my approach has been to deliver more than just interior décor, » says French designer Maxime d’Angeac as he flicks through a series of sketches in his Paris office. Inspired by the architects of the early 20th century – who worked with specialists to design every aspect of a building, from the façade to the furniture – d’Angeac begins every project by pencil, hand-drawing his vision before refining it to great precision.
Immersing himself in his work like a painter in their landscape, the architect goes beyond the aesthetic, creating a dialogue between craftsmanship and materiality to tell a story. In the same vein as the masters before him, each commission sees d’Angeac assemble a team of craftspeople – upholsterers, cabinet-makers and stone-cutters – from his close circle of partners, with everything down to the door handles made to measure. And it’s this collaborative approach that caught the eye of Accor when talks were underway to open an Orient Express-branded hotel.
« It was a wonderful defeat, » says d’Angeac of his unsuccessful bid to design the debut property in Rome. Having presented his concept, the owners decided to go in a different direction, but all was not lost; d’Angeac’s scheme eventually prompted Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin to pick up the phone with a new opportunity. « He knew I understood the vocabulary of Orient Express, so asked me to design the train. »