Nini Andrade Silva is one of the most prestigious interior designers in the world. Born in Funchal, Nini graduated in Design from the Institute of Visual Arts, Design and Marketing (IADE) in Lisbon, and simultaneously continued her academic and professional journey in places such as New York, London, Paris, South Africa and Denmark. With an impressive body of work across borders, Nini has seen her work recognised many times by various institutions, as well as becoming a frequent presence in prestigious publications worldwide. Alongside her acclaimed career in architecture and interior design, Nini is also the author of several furniture lines, and the versatility of her work is further reflected in her great passion for painting, with her pieces featured in major collections and contemporary art museums around the world, namely in Ireland and New York.
Nini Andrade is my guest in this edition, “Because listening to those who inspire is also a way of creating.” – By Carla Branco
Your work moves between art, design, and interior architecture, but always maintains a very distinctive signature. How would you describe the essence of Nini Andrade Silva’s creative universe?
My creative universe is born from the intersection between the visible and the invisible. I like to think that each project is a space of listening — listening to history, to culture, to material, and to silence. My signature is not expressed in formulas or styles, but rather in a sensory language that seeks to touch what is intangible. I work with memories, with textures that tell stories, and with atmospheres that embrace more than they show.
Many of your hotel projects, spread across the world, carry a strong sense of place. How do you transform the soul of a destination into an aesthetic and sensory experience within a hotel?
I believe that a hotel is a house with a passport. It is not about designing a space, but about making it eloquent, with its own accent. The process always begins with a deep immersion in the local culture — in its rituals, colors, materials, and symbols. Then the alchemy happens: design becomes a means of communication between those who arrive and the place that welcomes them. A good project should make the guest feel that they are in a unique, unrepeatable, and authentic place.
Madeira is more than your birthplace — it is your muse. How is Madeiran identity present in your work, and how do you seek to honor it in your creations?
Madeira lives in me as an archetype. It is memory, it is roots, it is sea and stone. Often, it is an almost invisible, yet omnipresent presence, revealed in the choice of materials, in the organic curves of volumes, in the colors of an Atlantic sunset. The brand Garota do Calhau, which I founded as a tribute to the children who once roamed barefoot on the pebble beaches of Madeira and which today is also a social solidarity cause, represents this connection well. Every project I sign is, in some way, a love letter to the island.
As an ambassador of Madeira, do you feel that design can be a form of cultural diplomacy that helps project the island on the international stage?
I believe that design is, par excellence, a territory of encounter between cultures. Although my Madeiran origin is always present — as a sensitive and poetic matrix — each project is born from deep respect for the identity of the place in which it is located. It is this dialogue between roots and territories that enriches the creative process. What drives me is the desire to build bridges, to give voice to local heritage, whether in Madeira, Vietnam, or Brazil. Cultural diplomacy, in this sense, manifests itself in listening and valuing diversity — and it is in this gesture of integration that, naturally, Madeira also reveals itself to the world.
When working with luxury brands in hospitality, how do you balance contemporary refinement with local cultural and artisanal elements?
True luxury, for me, lies in authenticity. In a globalized world, what distinguishes a space is what cannot be replicated. Whenever possible, I involve local artisans, use indigenous materials, and rescue ancestral techniques. But I do so with a contemporary eye, capable of reinterpreting tradition and integrating it into a sophisticated context. This balance is what gives soul to the project.
What role does sustainability play in your hotel projects, and how do you integrate conscious practices without compromising luxury aesthetics?
Sustainability is not an option; it is an ethical requirement. I believe it is possible — and desirable — to create luxury spaces with ecological awareness. This involves careful material selection, energy efficiency, the involvement of local communities, and the durability of the solutions proposed. The luxury of the future will be regenerative, sensible, and aligned with the rhythms of nature.
What currently inspires you the most — whether in travels, collaborations, or artistic movements — and how do these influences reflect in your future projects?
I am inspired by everything that comes from the earth and human gesture — materials with memory, silent knowledge, raw materials that demand respect. Recently, I had the honor of seeing the Duna sofa, a cork piece designed for the Garota do Calhau collection, join the permanent collection at MUDE – Museum of Design and Fashion, which reinforces my conviction that it is possible to create from identity and still speak a universal language. I also highlight the recent collaboration with Monteiro Fabrics, in which I developed a collection of eco-leather inspired by the Amazon rainforest, combining design, sustainability, and planetary awareness. On the other hand, the site-specific installation I presented with Softrock during Lisbon Design Week was an opportunity to explore design as a sensory and performative experience, challenging perceptions and emotions. What inspires me today is this possibility of designing not just objects or spaces, but worlds — worlds that touch, that unsettle, that care.
Beyond function and aesthetics, what do you consider to be the true impact of a space designed by you on those who experience it?
The deepest impact of a space is emotional. I like to think that my projects not only welcome bodies but touch souls. A well-designed space can inspire, calm, provoke, or simply make us feel at home. Design, when truly human, transforms into a sensory experience that remains in memory — like a perfume, like a song.
By Carla Branco
INFO: www.niniandradesilva.com