So Shiro Q&A

Interior architect Shiro Muchiri has created a gallery and event space in a Marylebone townhouse with a particular mission – to design and show work that melds contemporary design with traditional craft.

Design Anthology UK: What made you want to become a gallerist, alongside being an interior architect?

SM: Having done so many contemporary, high-end projects at the beginning of my career, I felt that there wasn’t a learning opportunity any more, which was something I craved. And so with my skillset I tried to match the two: I already knew a network of people who could make, and wondered if there was something I could do with that, but with products that were much more meaningful in terms of storytelling, learning, researching and experimenting.

We travelled the world meeting craftsmen, and I would see the skill of what they were doing, but it wasn’t right for the contemporary market or for the kinds of people I was designing houses for. High-end furniture is homogenous – companies were scared to do anything different, scared the market wouldn’t buy. But I felt we could do something different.

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