{"id":3726,"date":"2019-04-09T03:52:35","date_gmt":"2019-04-08T18:52:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/?p=3726"},"modified":"2019-04-09T03:52:35","modified_gmt":"2019-05-14T06:34:24","slug":"the-life-and-designs-of-a-rising-star-quattro-design-in-bangkok","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/design\/the-life-and-designs-of-a-rising-star-quattro-design-in-bangkok\/","title":{"rendered":"The Life and Designs of a Rising Star &#8211; Quattro Design in Bangkok"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"cb-itemprop\" itemprop=\"reviewBody\"><h3>Dao Vichada Sitakalin, Quattro Design in Bangkok<\/h3>\r\n<p>\u201cDao,\u201d the Thai nickname of Vichada Sitakalin, means \u201cstar\u201d in English, and that moniker seems oh-so-apropos for describing her rising status in the design world.<\/p>\r\n<p>And that status owes a lot to the fact that the woman\u2019s talents are as multifaceted as her r\u00e9sum\u00e9: working as the in-house designer for three high-end hotels and properties in Thailand; putting the finishing touches on multiple showrooms for Jim Thompson Home Furnishings, the illustrious Thai silk manufacturer; and more recently, she brought her visual flair and eye for color to bear on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sirihouse.com\/\">Siri House Dempsey<\/a> in Singapore, the showroom and lifestyle concept store of Sansiri, one of Thailand\u2019s largest residential developers.<\/p>\r\n<p>This is one industrious lady.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"attachment_3734\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3734\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao.jpg\" alt=\"ADFWebMagazine-Dao\" class=\"wp-image-3734 size-full\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao-150x99.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao-300x198.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao-230x152.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao-260x170.jpg 260w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/ADFWebMagazine-Dao-500x329.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3734\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dao Vichada Sitakalin<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p><iframe width=\"560\" height=\"314\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/N8nH2WLP4Cs\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\r\n<p>Sitting and chatting with her at Quattro Design, the furniture store and interior design &amp; styling company she cofounded on Bangkok\u2019s ritzy strip of trendy shops known as Sukhumvit Soi 55 (Thonglor), provides an atmospheric backdrop for hearing about the life and designs of Vichada. <\/p>\r\n<p>First she explained how she put her degree in Interior Architecture from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.risd.edu\/\" title=\"Rhode Island School of Design\">Rhode Island School of Design<\/a> to good use, by honing her skills for four years with prominent design firms in Boston and New York, before she succumbed to a touch of homesickness and the desire to make her mark in her homeland.<\/p>\r\n<p>After returning to Thailand, she gravitated towards the hospitality business, which is massive in the tourist-friendly kingdom, becoming the in-house designer for a trio of hotels. This is a demanding job that requires painstaking attention to the minutest details of staff uniforms and hotel amenities, to the big picture of the property\u2019s look and feel, from the artworks in the guest rooms to the furnishings in the lobby.\u00a0 <\/p>\r\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rayavadee.com\/en\/\">Rayavadee<\/a> in Krabi posed logistical problems too. For one thing, it\u2019s on a headland, crouched beside limestone peaks and the sea in southern Thailand, with no access by car. For another, the concept of down-to-earth luxury had to be emphasized with design elements that blended into the environs. <\/p>\r\n<p>The watchword in hospitality and tourism these days is sustainable development. That concept requires a naturally sensitive touch on the designer\u2019s part. \u201cMy role is that whatever I do in design, it has to be sustainable with nature and help to preserve it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\r\n<p>Vichada brought that talent to the renovations for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tamarindvillage.com\/en\/\">Tamarind Village<\/a>, a 45-room boutique hotel in the northern capital of Chiang Mai. Her team oversaw the renovations and put the finishing touches on the new spa, restaurant and boutique. <\/p>\r\n<p>One of the most challenging and artistic hotel projects she has worked on was the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rayaheritage.com\/en\/\">Raya Heritage<\/a> on the banks of the Ping River in Chiang Mai. Three years in the making, the concept of the hotel, she said, \u201cis Lanna culture, which is a melting pot of culture and crafts from Laos, Burma and a variety of ethnic groups. The concept is that I used all these elements in the hotel. I worked together with an assistant who studied art in Chiang Mai.\u201d <\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"attachment_3722\" style=\"width: 960px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3722\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1.jpg\" alt=\"Raya_Heritage suite1\" class=\"wp-image-3722 size-full\" width=\"950\" height=\"585\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1.jpg 950w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1-150x92.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1-300x185.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1-768x473.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1-230x142.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1-759x467.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite1-500x308.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 950px) 100vw, 950px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3722\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pool suite at Raya Heritage hotel in Chiang Mai. The gradient-colored curtains were especially dyed by the Jim Thompson company.<\/p><\/div> <div id=\"attachment_3723\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite2.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3723\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite2-759x500.jpg\" alt=\"Raya_Heritage suite2\" class=\"wp-image-3723 size-cb-759-500\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite2-759x500.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite2-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raya_Heritage-suite2-260x170.jpg 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3723\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Suite at Raya Heritage hotel in Chiang Mai.<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p>For this project, she spent a lot of time in the north, working with traditional weavers using hand-woven, naturally dyed fabrics, and ethnic hill-tribes like the Karen, who designed the pillows, along with local potters and wood carvers.<\/p>\r\n<p>Such artisans are, sadly, almost anachronisms. They make little money. They receive little acclaim. In addressing these slights and oversights, Vichada and the hotel staff organizes exhibitions at the hotel aimed at preserving the cultural heritage of the Lanna region. To date, they've organized 12 exhibitions, including on textiles and tribal arts. \"Every tribe has a story to tell. It\u2019s spirituality, it\u2019s tradition, it\u2019s all these angles,\u201d she explained.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>In doubling down on these altruistic efforts, she and the hotel staff have also set up a contact network so that guests can get in touch with the craftsmen and women to purchase their wares. <\/p>\r\n<p>For all the design emphasis on the past and using traditional materials, the overall ambience of this heritage hotel feels both fresh and contemporary, with none of the fussy stuffiness that\u2019s a drawback with some of these retro properties.<\/p>\r\n<p>The same could be said of Vichada, who is both a traditionalist and a modernist. Her work with the Jim Thompson brand radiates this seemingly paradoxical approach to her field.<\/p>\r\n<p>Most visitors to Bangkok have heard of the so-called \u201cSilk King\u201d whose traditional Thai house is second only to the Grand Palace in the city\u2019s list of the most visited tourism attractions. Because of his nickname and reputation as the man who helped to bring this Thai fabric back from the brink of extinction, some people labor under the misconception that the global string of stores bearing his name are all about silk.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/p>\r\n<p>Not so. The owners have hatched new product lines and branched out in many different directions; the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jimthompsonfabrics.com\/\">Jim Thompson<\/a> Home Furnishings brand was designed to remind consumers of the brand\u2019s versatility.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>She renovated their showroom, creating several showcases for the brand in 2016 and 2017. Last year, the concept that was given to her was \u2018Be You, Be Me\u2019. \u201cIt was really fun working with them because they gave me the artistic freedom to do what I wanted. My goal for each room was to show off Jim Thompson fabrics, to let people know that the brand is more than Thai silk. Jim Thompson actually has one of the greatest fabric collections not only in Thailand, but in the world,\u201d she said<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"attachment_3720\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-showroom.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3720\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-showroom-759x500.jpg\" alt=\"Jim-Thompson showroom\" class=\"wp-image-3720 size-cb-759-500\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-showroom-759x500.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-showroom-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-showroom-260x170.jpg 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3720\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Showroom at Jim Thompson Home Furnishings designed by Vichada Sitakalin.<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cI renovated their showroom, creating several showcases for them last year, six rooms in total. The concept that was given to me was \u2018Be You, Be Me\u2019. It was really fun working with them because they gave me the artistic freedom to do what I wanted. My goal for each room was the show off Jim Thompson fabrics, to let people know that the brand is more than Thai silk. Jim Thompson actually has one of the greatest fabric collections in Thailand,\u201d she said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"attachment_3718\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3718\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room-759x500.jpg\" alt=\"Jim Thompson The Gert Voorjans Room\" class=\"wp-image-3718 size-cb-759-500\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room-759x500.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room-230x153.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room-260x170.jpg 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3718\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Gert Voorjans room, featuring the Jim Thompson x Gert Voorjans fabric collection.<\/p><\/div> <div id=\"attachment_3719\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-Chinoiserie-room-1.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3719\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-Chinoiserie-room-1-759x500.jpg\" alt=\"Jim-Thompson Chinoiserie room (1)\" class=\"wp-image-3719 size-cb-759-500\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-Chinoiserie-room-1-759x500.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-Chinoiserie-room-1-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-Chinoiserie-room-1-260x170.jpg 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3719\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Chinoiserie room<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p>Each of those six showrooms was unique. \u201cThe Forbidden Colors Room,\u201d she explained, \u201chas all these crazy colors, patterns, neon, vibrant, which you wouldn\u2019t expect from Jim Thompson,\u201d whereas the Hampton Dynasty Room looked like a \u201csummerhouse in the Hamptons, mixed with Ming dynasty,\u201d which allowed her to combine all sorts of antiques with vivid colors like gold and fantastical fabrics woven with tigers and dragons for wallpaper.<\/p>\r\n<p>The diminutive dynamo with the sharp sense of style you would expect from such a cosmopolitan designer has combined many of these experiences and passions in co-founding her own design studio that now boasts 40 employees.<\/p>\r\n<p>In fact, the impetus for Quattro Design came from renovating older hostels, such as Rayavadee in southern Thailand. \u201cI realized that hotels really needed someone who could help them with sourcing. Together with a few close friends who also have a design background, we started Quattro Design,\u201d she said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"attachment_3724\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rayavadee-hotel.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3724\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rayavadee-hotel-759x500.jpg\" alt=\"Rayavadee hotel\" class=\"wp-image-3724 size-cb-759-500\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rayavadee-hotel-759x500.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rayavadee-hotel-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rayavadee-hotel-260x170.jpg 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3724\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Suite at Rayavadee hotel in Krabi<\/p><\/div> <div id=\"attachment_3725\" style=\"width: 769px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3725\" src=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite-759x500.jpg\" alt=\"Tamarind hotel - Suite\" class=\"wp-image-3725 size-cb-759-500\" width=\"759\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite-759x500.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite-230x153.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite-100x65.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tamarind-hotel-Suite-260x170.jpg 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-3725\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Suite at Tamarind Village hotel in Chiang Mai<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p>Nowadays, the studio and shop are run by her partner while Vichada does the \u201cbuying trips\u2026 the fun part. I do the sourcing and certain projects that really interest me or if there\u2019s been a request that they want me to do the project,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>These trips, through exotic lands with exalted traditions in arts and crafts, like China, Indonesia and the Philippines, also refill her creative wellspring.<\/p>\r\n<p>By continuing to combine work with travel and international quality with local color, Vichada\u2019s star is sure to shine ever brighter in the cosmos of the design world.<\/p>\r\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Quattro Design<br>\r\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.quattro-design.com\"><em>www.quattro-design.com<\/em><\/a><\/p><\/article>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dao Vichada Sitakalin, Quattro Design in Bangkok \u201cDao,\u201d the Thai nickname of Vichada Sitakalin, means \u201cstar\u201d i [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":3718,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"The Life and Designs of a Rising Star - Dao Vichada Sitakalin, \"Quattro Design\" in Bangkok\r\n\r\n#design #interior #designer #bangkok #\u30a4\u30f3\u30c6\u30ea\u30a2\u30c7\u30b6\u30a4\u30f3 #\u30a4\u30f3\u30c6\u30ea\u30a2 #\u30c7\u30b6\u30a4\u30ca\u30fc #\u30d0\u30f3\u30b3\u30af","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[8],"tags":[38,42,52,122],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Jim-Thompson-The-Gert-Voorjans-Room.jpg","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3726"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3726"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3726\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3718"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.adfwebmagazine.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}