Nantucket by Design Announces Luminary Line-Up for August Event

April 27, 2022  by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, Designer Weekly, Industry   

In its seventh year, Nantucket by Design celebrates the island’s unique influence on American design, delivering an exclusive experience and raising money for the NHA to continue its commitment to steward and preserve the heritage of Nantucket.

This year’s events will offer curated keynote and panel discussions, exclusive cocktail parties, an online silent auction, and collaborative design work of New York School of Interior Design (NYSID) and Kean University – Michael Graves College students. Participants will also enjoy the continued partnership with The Nantucket Summer Antiques Show for a Preview Party. Exciting new additions to the line-up include a Fashion Show and master class breakout sessions, offered in intimate settings, covering floral design, entertaining, and decorative arts.

“For the past two years, as we’ve all been tethered to our homes, our appreciation of where and how we live has grown exponentially. This year, we celebrate not only how our homes offer us comfort and security but allow us to express our personal style and passions with others through our decor, gardens, and entertaining,” says Stacey Bewkes and Olivia Charney Nantucket by Design 2022 chairs.

Alex Papachristidis will be the keynote speaker at the Design Luncheon. Born and raised in New York City, he got his first big commission while a student at Parsons School of Design and never looked back. Establishing his firm in 1987, he finds decorating the most fulfilling career. His work has been featured in Architectural Digest, Elle Décor, House Beautiful, House & Garden, Southern Accents, InStyle, and The New York Times. He recently received the Albert Hadley Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York School of Interior Design. He has been on both the AD100 and Elle Décor’s A-List. Papachristidis has been a guest of the Today Show numerous times and appeared on This Old House, CNN, and WSJ Lunch Break. He is also the co-founder of Everyday Elegance, his tabletop company, and his new second book, Living an Elegant Life, will be released later this year.

Taking part in the Design Panel, Tara Guerard is an American Southern event designer and planner. She founded her own company, Tara Guerard Soiree, in 1997 and a letterpress invitation company, The Lettered Olive, in 2009. She is recognized as one of the Nation’s leading tastemakers and is a top wedding planner by Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Martha Stewart, and Brides Magazine. She has appeared on The Martha Stewart Show, The Nate Berkus Show, and the Style Network. Guerard has planned celebrity weddings, featured in Town & Country, InStyle, and Food + Wine Magazines. She is the author of two books, Southern Weddings and Weddings by Tara Guerard.

Design Panelist Keith Robinson has been a tastemaker and a leader in the creative community of Atlanta for over three decades and founded his event design and production company, Gloriosa Design. He was a contributing editor for Veranda Magazine from 2016 to 2018. Thirteen years ago, Robinson began a restoration of a 19^th century farmhouse known in the area as The Hutcheson-Redwine Plantation. Here, Robinson has developed exhibition gardens featured in Garden & Gun magazine, Garden Design Magazine, Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles, Atlanta Magazine Home, Flowers Magazine, and Veranda. Currently, he acts as the executive director of Gardens & Culinary at the helm of Dunaway Gardens, a property listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.

Design Panelist Christopher Spitzmiller began his career creating his one-of-a-kind lamps with a crew of skilled artisans in 1996 in Washington, D.C., then moved to New York City in 1999. The lights are of timeless appeal and luxurious quality. As of late, he has expanded his designs to tableware and other ceramic accessories. Spitzmiller’s work is often featured in celebrated publications such as Architectural Digest, Town & Country, Elle Décor, Veranda, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He has had the honor of making lamps for the Oval Office, the last four White House Administrations, the Blair House, and many other distinguished American homes. When not in the studio, he can be found at his farm in Millbrook, which is captured in his book A Year at Clove Brook Farm, published by Rizzoli.

Design Panelist Ashley Whittaker is described as the “neo-traditionalist.” The New York City decorator’s hallmarks are classic taste and chic sophistication. Whittaker’s signature style is immediately evident, characterized by tailored rooms incorporating charming detail and engaging play on color and pattern. Listed on Elle Décor’s A-List of top designers, Whittaker’s work has been published in The New York Times, Veranda, Southern Living, Coastal Living, Domino, and most notably, on the cover of House Beautiful on six separate occasions. A Florida native, Whittaker received her bachelor’s degree from St. Lawrence University. She credits her training in the design industry to the legendary decorator, Markham Roberts, for whom she worked before starting her own business in 2006. Her first book, The Well-Loved House, was released this past fall.