Focus on DAAA Haus

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Casa K, 2020. Photo courtesy DAAA Haus

Keith Pillow, the founder and creative director of the international design and architecture studio DAAA Haus, has a real passion for design, art and architecture, and describes himself as a romantic creative, inspired by everything that surrounds him. With offices in Malta, Milan and Ragusa, his is a truly multidisciplinary studio that works on a huge range of interiors and buildings for hotels, offices, restaurants and private homes.

Name: Keith Pillow, founder of DAAA Haus.

Where you work: Malta, Milan and Sicily. In the Porta Venezia district of Milan.

Your studio’s Instagram account: @daaahaus

Describe what your studio does: architecture, interiors, brand design and product design.

Where did you study? My family history is rooted in industrial design and the production of works in metal, detailed technical drawings and worksites. I’m actually a self-taught creative and I got into this sector because I was curious and “hungry” for new experiences.

What projects are you working on right now? A private house in Bellagio, on Lake Como, some boutique hotels in the historic city centres of La Valletta, Ragusa Ibla and Modica, a beach club, and the restoration and regeneration of a brewery for a modern commercial project with offices, bars, cafés and creative spaces.

Your dream project: A modern building high up in the mountains and a beach resort in Bali or Australia.

The project by someone else that’s influenced you the most: lots, but especially ones by Philippe Starck, Pitsou Kadem and Maria Grasso Cannizzo.

A crucial detail in all your projects: Books and plants.

City centre or far-flung places? City and sea.

Something you have at home designed by you: A metal bookcase and an abstract painting, acrylic on canvas.

What gifts do you like giving? Books, wine and bonsai.

If you could build a secret passage in your home, where would it lead to? I’d build two, one leading to the sea, one leading to the mountains.

Rocksalt, 2015. Photo courtesy DAAA Haus

What do you usually do on Sundays? Go for a long run, cook with my family and read a book.

Your favourite place in Milan: I like to run in the centre of the city, from Porta Venezia to the Duomo as far as Brera, when everyone else is still asleep. Then there’s the Isola district at aperitif time with friends after work.

Studio wok would like to ask you: how do you feel about being bombarded with the images that assail us on a daily basis? Ignore the things you’re not interested in and let yourself be inspired by the others.

Would you like to ask the next interviewee a question? Penne or spaghetti?