Inside Designer Ken Fulk’s Magical, Imaginative World
A true renaissance man, designer Ken Fulk is known for his artistry and creativity, where each layer defies expectations. As he tells it, “I am the same person I was when I was 6 years old. I was in charge of every holiday celebration. I picked my mother’s dresses. I always have seen [things] in this sort of cinematic fashion.”
Take the Goodtime Hotel in Miami, a collaboration with multi-hyphenate entertainer Pharrell Williams and entrepreneur David Grutman. Fulk brings his singular aesthetic to the interiors, a whimsical tour de force of eclectic details and his theatrical design style. His work at the Crown Club, a hidden gem in Barclays Center arena in Brooklyn, New York is a “truly transformative space in an unexpected location,” he says.
Fulk is more than a designer. He’s a director, choreographing unforgettable moments with everything he does. He starts by writing a script and brings it to life with the help of his colorful cast of characters—his team. Fulk believes in the power of saying “Yes” and breaking down boundaries, which is why his San Francisco and New York offices are called the Magic Factory. “Magic is that belief in knowing that somehow we’re going to figure it out. There may be a sleight of hand, but it’s still magic,” he says, adding that he calls the 70-plus visionaries that fill his two offices “magic makers.”
His latest book is aptly titled: Ken Fulk: The Movie in My Mind. It is there, in those pages, and in every Ken Fulk environment, that we all want to live, dine, stay, and play—for even a glimpse of his signature glamour and cinematic flair can be lifechanging. He’s a self-professed memory maker, befitting true hospitality. In life according to Fulk, “When we let fear take over, we don’t do good work because we’re afraid people are going to judge us for it. We don’t let fear trump the process or stifle us in any way.”
Source: Hospitality Design
Words: HD Staff
Photography Credit: ©Douglas Friedman, ©Alice Gao, ©Brendan Mainini
