David Hicks

1929 - 1998

“What is important is not how valuable or inexpensive your objects are, but the care and feeling with which you arrange them“

Influences: Sir John Soane

Notable clients: The Royal Family, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, Hon. Anthony Samuel, Helena Rubenstein, Mrs. Conde Nast

David Nightingale Hicks, the great English decorator, started his career in interior design in 1954, after his mother’s London house was successfully publicised in House & Garden magazine. He became the most wanted interior designer in London immediately after and revolutionised interior design in the 60s and 70s.

Without doubt, he was the most famous British designer of his day and probably is still today. He was the rebellious prince of English decor, who broke away from the traditional English style with his bold geometric prints, adventurous colour combinations and eclectic mix of antique and contemporary furnishings. In his own words, “ (his) greatest contribution as an interior designer has been to show people how to use bold color mixtures, how to use patterned carpets, how to light rooms, and how to mix old with new.” The English were blown away by his unexpected and quirky look and his daring style became associated with modernity and fun-loving hedonism, also-known-as the ‘Swinging Sixties’.

No wallpaper, fabric or carpet was good enough for Hicks’s taste so he started designing and producing his own products, all of which stayed iconic until this day. 16 years after his debut, he became one of the most famous and sought after interior designers in the world and opened offices and boutiques in eight different countries.

One of his speciality was bedroom interiors with his unique and spectacular canopy beds. As opposed to traditional canopy beds with bedposts, Hicks’s bed canopy and curtains were attached directly to the ceiling, resulting in interior masterpieces. He crowned his masterpieces with strong colour combinations and bold patterns, solidifying the Hicks look throughout the house.

He advocated “the more shades of a particular colour you put together the better the result will be” and proved his point with many successful design projects over the years including the Long Room at his own house in Oxford.

In addition to his undeniable talent, he had a massive ego and self-confidence, to the point that he revealed his favourite decorator was himself - can anyone blame him? I mean he is still one of the greatest interior decorators and his patterned carpets and fabrics are still going strong today.

Fun fact: He worked as an art teacher in the British army before starting his career in interior design and he was the one who introduced the term ‘tablescapes’ - carefully arranged compositions of objects and artworks.

Books: David Hicks: A Life of Design, David Hicks Scrapbooks & David Hicks: Designer