Headlong into a parallel world

There is no common thread running through Andee Hess' interior design. Rather, there are red, blue and green threads that weave their way through the room, intrinsically intertwined and yet with a tremendously explosive outward force. Anyone who scrutinises the projects of the 45-year-old designer from Portland, Oregon, feels as if they have tumbled headlong into a parallel world: A world of fantastic colours and voluminous curves, of bizarre ideas and spectacular playfulness. There is a lot, almost too much, of crumpled fabrics, nubby surfaces and ecstatically moulded grooved structures rolling through the room, shifting the perception of above and below, walls and floors, reality and illusion. And it is marvellous.

Andee Hess is the head and founder of Osmose Design, a creative studio on the west coast of the USA that is dedicated to exceptional design concepts in the catering, retail and high-end residential segments. The name of her studio says a lot about the way in which Hess approaches new projects: it comes from the Latin word "osmosis", which means the flow of particles through a semi-permeable membrane. In other words, Hess explains, she absorbs everything her clients are willing to give her as a dialogue partner. From these wishes and ideas, the designer filters an essence that is reflected in customised furniture and a unique spatial landscape: "And then I encourage them to go a little further." It is precisely this trusting, almost intimate collaboration that prevents Hess from selling the same concept over and over again, even though people keep coming to her who have seen pictures of her projects and want to realise the same interior in their own homes. But there is no repetition: "I have the privilege of being able to say 'no' to certain requests. Or 'yes' to very different commissions: A music video, a museum installation, a customised home. I want to take on projects that I've never done before."

Andee Hess' interior design is in great demand in the USA due to her willingness to push the boundaries of the possible into the unconventional, if not the unimaginable. From comparatively small Portland, she has made the leap to Miami, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. And sometimes her astonishment at her own success is still evident. The word "mutual" is often used in her sentences, reflecting her affection for people in general and her own curiosity about other people's projects in particular. It is also the reason why, more than 15 years after founding her studio Osmose Design, she still consciously runs it independently and only works with one other interior designer, Makrai Crecelius, on a permanent basis. "Of course, I could also build an empire with lots of employees," she says, "but I want to stay close to the action." What people sometimes think are AI-designed visual worlds are real motifs from Hess' portfolio. She now uses artificial intelligence in the early stages of conceptualisation, says the designer. She researches and explores. However, an AI cannot imitate her personal relationship with clients.

It is sometimes difficult to tell whether Osmose Design's projects are art or commissioned work. Some designs look like something straight out of a Wes Anderson film, including commissioned works from public spaces. The "Tomorrow Theatre" cinema is one such example, as is the "Carioca Bowls" restaurant in Portland. In it, Andee Hess skilfully overstretches the human imagination: she lets sweeping arches and elliptical furniture collide with an ecstatic colour layering. 50 shades of peach? No problem: Hess' projects are mind-expanding in the best sense of the word.

This is both challenging and beneficial, because it whets the appetite for more: for design, art, culture and ice cream, or simply for sitting on the couch at home and looking at the beautifully swirled interior design. Because Hess also lets her style blossom in the private sphere: Sometimes literally, when floral prints meet chequerboard patterns and intersect with almost devotional, sacred stained glass windows in the living area.

The New York Times labelled this "Tetris style" back in 2019 – and attested to the interior designer's "sense of wonder and surprise" in her work. In fact, the exuberant use of materials and fabrics that Hess piles on top of each other, gathering and tying, is reminiscent of the playful dream world from Alice in Wonderland. Even the famous quote from the Mad Hatter could have come from her: "You can only achieve the impossible if you believe it is possible." Andee Hess has found her own words for this: "Osmose is pushing it."