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Paul Hecker is one of the founding Directors of Hecker Guthrie and his enthusiasm for design and how people interact with interior spaces has only strengthened over his 20 plus years in the industry. Within the studio, Paul is a sound voice and worthy commentator on not just design, but life, fashion, politics and film.
Humour and curiosity are key ingredients in Paul’s design approach, resulting in a body of work that carefully balances considered spatial planning with a sprinkling of whimsy and craft.
Paul is an inquisitive traveller and delights in the serendipity that comes with such travels, particularly when churches and cemeteries are involved. He is an avid collector of “beautiful things” with a love not only of an object but the story it tells.
When setting out to design a space, he asks not what the client wants it to look like, but how they want to make them feel.
Generous with his time and knowledge, Paul is the first to acknowledge brilliance by others, yet this harnesses a creative challenge which drives him to continue to be an arbiter of style and taste.
After starting out in 1999 as Hecker Phelan & Guthrie, in partnership with Kerry Phelan, Paul Hecker and business partner Hamish Guthrie launched Hecker Guthrie in 2010. They are known for their meticulous attention to detail, and for injecting a pinch of eclecticism and fun into even their grandest projects. Many of the projects Hecker Guthrie take on do sit at the slightly higher end of the budget scale, yet even their most modest styling / decoration projects are completed with the greatest consideration and genuine enthusiasm. A large part of this approach comes from founding director Paul Hecker.
Paul Hecker is a well known and revered figure and spokesperson in the Australian design industry, and after 20+ years in the industry he still has the most infectious enthusiasm for his craft. He’s supremely talented, opinionated, hilariously entertaining, and seemingly full of energy at all times. As his bio accurately states – ‘humour and curiosity are key ingredients in Paul’s design approach, resulting in a body of work that carefully balances considered spatial planning with a sprinkling of whimsy and craft’.
Paul’s approach to design is really about telling a story. When embarking on a new project, he asks not what the client wants the space to look like, but how they want it to make them feel. The results, of course, are rich, considered interiors that never feel contrived or cookie-cutter in their approach.
SEE ALSO: Top Interior Designers | J. Randall Powers
Background & Realizations : Bests Projects
Hospitality
RUYI Restaurant
FOXES DEN Restaurant
Commercial
BALMAIN ST STUDIO
CORNWELL STUDIO
Multi Residential
GARDEN HOUSE
JAQUES
EVIE, SALES SUITE
GEORGE & ALLEN, RENDERS
Retail
THE WINDSOR ANNEX
SABA, COLLINS ST
Elwood House / Melbourne
Completed in collaboration with Woods Bagot, Elwood House embraces the idea of a house rather than an apartment where you enter upon a large living space conducing to entertaining and in doing so creates spaces which offer the end user the same functionality of a family home.
Gia / Jakarta
Gia is a restaurant and whiskey bar located in Jakarta, Indonesia. The voluminous space is divided into a main restaurant with Italian inspired cuisine, whiskey bar, wine bar, VIP zone, and external space catering to its high end cliental with dining and wine bar.
A typical day at work for Paul Hecker
“The diverse nature of our projects makes every day interesting and unique – but here was my day yesterday”:
- 2am wakeup call with a touch of the insomnias, with three hours of TV to follow.
• Gym first thing in the morning - Coffee at Baby, then arrive at work (late).
• Glare at everyone so I don’t get in trouble for being late!
• Design reviews with the team, client meetings, sketches and concepts on the drawing board, visit some supplier showrooms, as well as tend to the more pragmatic side of the business such as resourcing and potential projects.
• Distract everyone with the latest YouTube - Try my hand at an Instagram post (@heckerguthrie).
• Gym at lunch
• Afternoon follows morning.
• Lean cuisine and TV, then to bed.
Winner – Australian Interior Design Awards – Gia 2015
Winner – Belle Coco Republic Interior Design Awards – Gia 2015
Winner – Australian Hotels Association, WA – Cottesloe Beach Hotel
Belle Coco Republic Interior Design Awards – Interior Designer of the Year 2013
Winner – Property Council of Australia Award – Best residential development award for The Garden House 2013
Gold Medal Award for Design Excellence – IDEA Awards 2012
Winner – IDEA Awards 2012 Residential Decoration – Park St Residence
Five Star Award for Best Apartment – The International Property Awards for Flora with BPM 2012
Winner – The Interior Design Awards for Best International Design – Graze and Kha 2012
Winner – Urban Development Institute of Australia (Medium Density) The Garden House (Collaborative partners Woods Bagot) 2011
Winner – Interior Design Corporate/Hospitality Division
The Melbourne Design Awards 2011
The Millswyn, Melbourne
Winner 2009
AIA NSW Chapter Harry Seidler Commercial Architecture Award –
ivy (Collaborative Partners Merivale, Woods Bagot and Hecker Phelan and Guthrie)
Winner 2009
Urbis Magazine Design Annual, Australian Building 2009 –
ivy (Collaborative Partners Merivale, Woods Bagot and Hecker Phelan and Guthrie)
Winner 2009
AIA NSW Chapter – Lloyd Rees Award for Urban Design –
ivy (Collaborative Partners Merivale, Woods Bagot and Hecker Phelan and Guthrie)
Winner 2009
AIA NSW Chapter – Commercial Architecture Award
ivy (Collaborative Partners Merivale, Woods Bagot and Hecker Phelan and Guthrie)
Winner 2009
Harpers Bazaar Luxury Reborn Awards 2009 Award for Space – Hecker Phelan and Guthrie
Winner 2009
IDA Hospitality Design –
ivy (Collaborative Partners Merivale, Woods Bagot and Hecker Phelan and Guthrie)
Winner 2009
IDA Best of State – Commercial Design (NSW) –
ivy (Collaborative Partners Merivale, Woods Bagot and Hecker Phelan and Guthrie)
Winner 2009
IDA Corporate Design Commendation The Gauge –
Bovis Lend Lease Head Office (Collaborative with WHO Design)
Best Hospitality Interior 2008
Interior Design Excellence Awards
Bistro Guillaume
Winner 2005
RAIA (Victoria Chapter)
Interior Design Award
Botanical Restaurant and Bar, Melbourne
Winner 2004
IDEA Award Retail Category
Saba Store, Melbourne
Winner 2003
Belle Magazine
Space House of the Year 2003
Residential House, East Melbourne
Winner 2003
IDEA Awards / Bang and Olufsen Award for excellence
Reserve Restaurant, Melbourne
Winner IDEA Awards / Bang and Olufsen Award 2003
Hospitality Category
Reserve Restaurant, Melbourne
Interior Architecture Award 2001
RAIA NSW
Establishment Hotel, Sydney
SEE ALSO: Top Interior Designers | Christian Liaigre
The studio is based somewhere between the Yarra River, The Botanical Gardens and Church St, Richmond in a creative hub in the suburb of Cremorne. Making part of the team is eight Interior Designers and Interior Architects – a high proportion of which are from New Zealand. Hecker Guthrie has an in-house furniture, décor and styling department led by Simone Haag who hunts / gathers for many of our client projects, as well as looking after our Marketing and Communications. We also employ a Finance Manager and General Manager to keep the workings turning.
WHY HECKER GUTHRIE?
– AWARD -WINNING DESIGNERS WITH A MARKETABLE BRAND
– STRONG PLANNING
– HIGH LEVEL DOCUMENTATION
– SUCCESSFUL SALES HISTORY
– HOLISTIC APPROACH TO GRAPHIC DESIGN & RENDERS
– STRONG AGENT RELATIONSHIPS
– STYLING
