After completing his degree in architecture Jean-Michel Gathy initiated his career in 1979, residing for almost three years in Belgium in the architectural industry. He subsequently went on to work and live in Hong Kong, Bali and Singapore.
Jean-Michel’s ceaseless change of culture and environment has been a great benefit to his incomparable designs. Inspiration for designs emerge from his analytical mind when travelling – travelling 220 days out of the year with “a critical eye” inspires these phenomenal designs. He will analyse and question everything he perceives, and states that sub-consciously he will reminisce things he has comprehended whether it be colours, proportions, volumes, visual approach or a relationship between spaces.
Jean-Michel and his team at Malaysian-based firm Denniston, have mastered the art of designing seamlessly between architecture, interior and landscape design. Having produced designs for numerous styles of hotels, when it comes to urban design he is sensitive towards comfort, with a belief that “ultimately comfort is the first quality a hotel should have”.
A signature style that you will associate with Jean-Michel’s designs is the use of geometry, symmetry and balance. All of which are individually distinctive however all hold the same consistency of quality. Jean-Michel’s admiration towards symmetry was highlighted to Inex. He comments: “If I asked you to name some of the world’s most famous historic monuments, everything you list would be perfectly symmetrical…Something about symmetry is very pleasing to the human eye; people are comfortable with something that suits the eye.”
Quality and comfort
The team at Denniston have produced the highest quality swimming pools for hotels all over the world. When designing for these hotels Jean-Michel respectively incorporates some of the country’s culture into all of his designs, which makes them all unique to their country of origin. He says: “It is almost the responsibility of the architect or interior designer to bring an aspect of the local culture and country’s values into their designs.” That said, designs are not a mere reproduction of what is associated with the country. He humours: “Just because you are in Rome you don’t have to build a colosseum.” All designs respect the fundamental values of the country and the local culture, references are added to each design that are extracted from the country’s culture.
“Many architects enter into a comfort zone after many years of designing,” explains Jean-Michel. He describes himself as a “fighter” and believes in the challenges he is presented with, re-questioning himself frequently when designing, to ensure that every design is unique to former projects, culminating in his success.
Working in a team of 150 designers described as “eagles” is one of Jean-Michel’s greatest achievements. He has created a team of extraordinary, balanced designers that are currently working on 35 hotels; some in construction, design stages and some opening momentarily. The team is due to open 16 hotels between 2017-2018, including The One and Only in China and a renovation on The One and Only in the Maldives.
Comfort, exclusivity and space is Jean-Michel’s definition of ‘luxurious’, which his designs demonstrate exceptionally. His perception is that luxury does not necessarily require the use of expensive fabrics – simplicity can define luxury and class.
All designs are individually, extraordinarily striking, describing his designs as “children”. When Inex asked Jean-Michel if he had a favoured design he replied with a thought-provoking response: “Do you have children? If someone asked you which one of your children is your favourite, you would not be able to respond – that is my problem, I have no project that I like more or less”.
Marina Bay Sands
Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands infinity pool is an iconic design of Jean-Michel’s. The 150m long infinity pool overlooks downtown Singapore and is built on a platform above three buildings which reaches a height of 650ft, resulting in the Marina Bay Sands infinity pool as the largest outdoor pool at this height. Initially the design plan for the Singapore’s renowned Marina Bay Sands hotel was to have the infamous infinity pool facing the sea. Jean-Michel opposed this original direction due to the characteristics of the establishment. He explains: “What was characteristic of this site is downtown Singapore.” The pool was switched around and now overlooks spectacular downtown Singapore. The architect of the casino at the Marina Bay Sands resort, built by Safdie Architects, approached Jean-Michel asking to pick his brain. Safdie Architects’ initial concept was to place one or two restaurants and a swimming pool across the the top of the three buildings. When approached with this project, Jean-Michel was asked what he would do with this rooftop garden, after sitting down for a total of 10 minutes he had his design. When he made his presentation, the team at the Marina Bay Sands hotel adored his plan for the build. This infamous design was a major stride for Jean-Michel and his team, with the hotel frequently being used as the face of Singapore’s marketing campaigns.