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DMTV Milkshake: The Thrills and Pressures of Designing Some of the World’s Most Exclusive Addresses

05.04.22 | By
DMTV Milkshake: The Thrills and Pressures of Designing Some of the World’s Most Exclusive Addresses

Lauren Rottet’s portfolio looks like something out of Succession: jaw-dropping interiors with spectacular Manhattan skylines, fit for modern-day royalty. As the founding principal of Rottet Studio, she’s led the design of more than 40 luxury hotels and some of the world’s most exclusive addresses, including 200 E. 83rd Street in New York. If anything, Succession’s interiors look a little downmarket compared to Rottet’s spectacular spaces – sets, perhaps, in a way that corresponds with her view of the essential nature of her job: “​​I like to think like I’ve been hired as a film set designer,” she says. “Whether my film is staged in the most exquisite pied-à-terre in all of Paris or whether my film is stationed in a beautiful little cottage on a remote island – it’s my job to do the exquisite pied-à-terre or to do the warm, wonderful little cottage. Whether the budget is low or whether the budget is high, I see my job as equally as important.”

In this week’s Milkshake, Lauren chats with us from her home in Houston, sharing her many influences and how she confronts the pressures of working with global talents. We asked her if the pressure goes up along with the budget. “The stress is always on,” she says. “There is a bit of pressure on these mega-projects like Central Park Tower, 200 East 83rd, or the one we’re just starting in San Francisco with Norman Foster. The developers and owners have hired you and they’re entrusting you with this very, very important project. In a sense, you have to compete with these amazing architects – or not really compete, but you need to bring your work to their level, so that expectations about the inside [of the building] are never let down.”

Tune in for more of this fascinating talk.

dmtv milkshake Lauren rottet

New York Stock Exchange

dmtv milkshake Lauren rottet

Korea Development Bank

dmtv milkshake Lauren rottet

Stolle House

dmtv milkshake Lauren rottet

Target NY

dmtv milkshake Lauren rottet

234 East 23rd

dmtv milkshake Lauren rottet

Gulf South Pipeline

Diana Ostrom, who has written for Wallpaper, Interior Design, ID, The Wall Street Journal, and other outlets, is also the author of Faraway Places, a newsletter about travel.

Milkshake, DMTV (Design Milk TV)’s first regular series, shakes up the traditional interview format by asking designers, creatives, educators and industry professionals to select interview questions at random from their favorite bowl or vessel. During their candid discussions, you’ll not only gain a peek into their personal homeware collections, but also valuable insights into their work, life and passions.