An Inside Look at Simply Magnificent: A Showcase of Homes

Over the past several years, Otherwise has built an ongoing integrated marketing campaign for The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Chicago. Our work has included website design, visual identity, social media marketing, print advertising and more. Our recent collaboration with The Residences was Simply Magnificent: A Showcase of Homes, an interior design showcase benefiting the Art Institute of Chicago. Otherwise designed and developed the identity, website and promotional materials for this premier event.

Throughout the Simply Magnificent Showcase, Otherwise followed the gala, the tours and the designers on Simply Magnificent, the official blog for The Ritz-Carlton Residences. The blog served as a living resource to learn about the showcase, read about the concepts and see photography of the finished designs.

The elegant, one-of-a-kind showcase provided guests with the opportunity to tour five ultra-luxury condominiums in The Residences, as imagined by internationally renowned designers. Guests could also view The Landmark Club, featuring the private art collection and grand entertainment spaces. Each of the five residences were decorated in their own distinctive style by leading interior designers Frank Ponterio, Doug Atherley, Samantha Todhunter, Julia Wong, Javier Martin Muriel and Mick De Giulio.

Otherwise featured a series of posts on the Simply Magnificent blog spotlighting the designers. Our interviews explore their background, unique style and vision for their showcase residence. Let us take you behind the scenes of each design concept, giving you a glimpse into the impressive condominiums in The Residences.

Frank Ponterio of Frank Ponterio Interior Design (Lake Forest) is known for bringing timeless design to contemporary lifestyles, balancing elegance with modern ease. Each of his projects is met with a discerning appreciation for artistry, authenticity and personal style.

Frank Ponterio described his vision for the showcase as imagining the unit as his in-town residence. Clean-lined, handsome and neat, with touches of elegance, the public and private areas of the residence flow into one another but with distinct difference. The public rooms are open and ideal for entertaining, while the private rooms provide relaxation and sanctuary. The cashmere walls mix with rich details in the bedroom, which Frank designed to be conducive for retreat and rest. The public rooms are designed to draw you in with an elegantly warm welcome.

A fuzzy chair next to a bookshelf — Frank Ponterio’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

Four people point out the window of a stately living room with velvet couch — Frank Ponterio’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home

Doug Atherley of Kinari Design (London) specializes in the interior architecture, design and decoration of luxury residential and boutique commercial properties, yachts and private jets. Atherley describes his design style as relaxed, and strives to achieve designs that look effortless.
Doug Atherley’s concept for The Residences came from imagining a place he would like as a pied-à-terre when visiting the city. Doug loves projects where he gets to be his own client, and keeping his family in mind helps guide his vision. Atherley understands good design in everything we experience, from the layout of a magazine to the mechanism of a corkscrew. The ability to think a design through as the owner or user will experience it, is vital.

A swanky dining room with modern chandelier, fully set table — Doug Atherley’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

White sectional sofa in a living room — Doug Atherley’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

Samantha Todhunter of Samantha Todhunter Design (London) has completed projects worldwide, including in Switzerland, USA, France and the UK. Her design practice creates easy, elegant interiors that fuse classic inspiration with the needs of modern lifestyles.

Samantha Todhunter describes her vision for the showcase as a fresh take on traditional style, infusing classic themes with a hint of glamour and wit and above all creating a space and design that is complimentary to a beautiful building and a beautiful city. Her design style is relaxed, a little contemporary and a little classic. She loves vintage with new, as well as clashes of style and color with an undercurrent of simplicity.

The living room in Samantha Todhunter's home — Samantha Todhunter’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

A group of people tour a home, where an abstract painting of Jimi Hendrix hangs on the wall — Samantha Todhunter’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

Julia Wong of Julia Wong Designs (Los Angeles) has been in the design industry for 20 years, evolving with technology and the role it plays in all of our lives. A creature of urban settings and global travels, she is widely recognized by design aficionados for her captivating residential and commercial interiors and exteriors.

Julia Wong’s vision integrates design, technology and art in the style of industrial chic. Using a palette of earth, water and metal, she embraces the urban environment. Julia works to fuse the interior and exterior in ways that make it feel like it’s one space. She has interpreted this concept by designing an elevated fireplace bar in the same palette as the interior furniture, the exterior balcony as an extension of the luxury living room. Julia went behind the scenes to discuss her concept for each room in her showcase unit.

The living room of Julia Wong's home — Julia Wong’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

A reclining chair looking out at a window — Julia Wong’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

Javier Martin Muriel of BALTUS (Spain) has an innate sense of creativity and enduring passion, which means he plays an active role in each project, taking great pleasure in his personal involvement in preserving the essence of the brand and his designs. Over the past decade he has continued to craft avant-garde interiors across the world from Europe to Africa and the United States.

An all-white living room looking out at the Allenton Hotel — Javier Martin Muriel’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

An all-white living room — Javier Martin Muriel’s showcase. Courtesy of Traditional Home.

Mick De Giulio of de Giulio Kitchen Design (Wilmette) is widely recognized for growing and bringing distinction to kitchen interiors, and has been designing innovative kitchens for nearly 40 years. Recognition of his undying creative energy has come in the form of premiere assignments and relationships worldwide where he has garnered praise from design and industry publications, professionals and organizations alike.

De Giulio has provided the custom kitchen designs for all five units, featuring his new collection BeauxArts.02 for SieMatic (introduced in Cologne, Germany in 2011). With clean lines and classic proportions, this collection provides the simplicity of an artist’s canvas, allowing each kitchen to include a mix of vocabularies, textures and finishes, and to become a personalized reflection of the owner’s unique tastes and style.