The many rooms of Joey Tesalona

One advantage of being a professional interior designer is that you are able to both draft and carry out your design ideas. The best furnishings and finishing touches are undoubtedly expensive, so it is always a special opportunity to be able to work with discerning homeowners who value quality, and see your plans come to fruition.

Although Joey Tesalona started in the hotel and hospitality business in the Philippines, he found his true calling as an interior designer when he moved to the United States, where he lived for 26 years. After taking some courses at the New York School of Interior Design and Parsons School of Design, he designed homes in Bridgehampton, Chelsea and East Hampton, and had projects in Wall Street and downtown Manhattan. He designed interiors while working as a visual merchandiser for the design houses Frette, known for luxurious Italian designer linens, and Felissimo, an international showroom of contemporary design. A stint with luxury Swiss watch designer Patek Philippe served to heighten his outstanding design sense even more.

“Designing private spaces is always a challenge,” says Joey, who moved back to Manila recently after Jeffrey Urr, his life partner of 11 years, succumbed to cancer. “A designer should have a personal experience with the homeowner so that he can create spaces that will be consistent with, and complement the client’s character.”

His experience has shown that although some clients may have an image of the exact style that they would prefer, it might take collaboration with a designer to give substance to their ideas. “The budget is always a primary concern,” says Joey. “But I like to impress on my clients that style is not just a matter of economics. With enough creativity, we should be able to work within the figures that they set.” The difference between designing in New York and Manila, in his opinion, lies in the ready availability of materials available to the designer. He has had to scour the local market for reliable sources of fabric, finishing material and accent pieces for an increasingly design-conscious Manila clientele that is updated on worldwide trends.

“The move back to Manila has been exciting thus far,” says Joey, who regularly trawls the art galleries for outstanding works he can recommend. He is constantly on the lookout for original and select items that have a strong potential for becoming classic collectibles and looks forward to exploring the provinces and finding objects to incorporate in his projects.

“I do not limit myself and am open to everything,” replies Joey, when asked whether he prefers designing private spaces or commercial displays. “Both are equally interesting to do.” As visual director for Frette for almost three years, he regularly shuttled to the different stores across the United States, aside from traveling to Milan at least twice a year. For Felissimo Design House in New York, he put together and was curator for a number of exhibitions. “It could be fashion, furniture and other interesting functional items,” he says of the nature of the exhibits. “We’ve had shows featuring recycled objects that were transformed into outstanding pieces.” In the past, his keen eye has helped him identify, rescue and give new life and vigor to remarkable furniture items that were carelessly relegated to garage sales, junk shops and even trash bins. 

“I brought home with me all the pieces that are important to me,” says Joey, who relates that he relocated back to the Philippines with a container-load of personal items. “I knew that it was unlikely for me to get pieces that I have been lucky to acquire in the past.” Among these objects is a first series Ettore Sottsass tray that was acquired in the 1980s. The piece was once borrowed by the Toledo Museum for an exhibit.   

“To fill up a room or a house could be costly,” admits Joey. But guidance from an interior designer could actually lessen costs incurred from haphazardly putting objects together and then discarding them when an effect is not achieved. “The designer is just there to help people come up with the right choices – lighting, fabric, color scheme and the style that best suits them. In my case, I’d like to make people feel that good design is accessible even without spending a fortune. A budget should not be a hindrance to good taste.”

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JT Designs is at B&M Building, 161 Aguirre St., Legazpi Village, Makati City, Philippines, with telefax 817-8518. Or log on to www.tesalonadesigns.com.