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Creating The Betsy: Diamante Pedersoli + Carmelina Santoro

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Creating The Betsy: Diamante Pedersoli + Carmelina Santoro

 

 




Introduction to Diamante Pederosoli + Carmelina Santoro.  2:44 min.  Interview:  Raymond Elman + Katie Rothfield.  Video Editing:  Daniel Domenech.  Music:  Santiago Suarez.  Recorded via Zoom, 12/17/2020.

 

DIAMANTE PEDEROSOLI, Inc. is a design studio that provides interior designs services for high-end residential properties and small luxury hotels.

Pederosoli does not have a specific style because she likes for her projects to be unique and to reflect not only her design ideas but also the clients’ needs. Her projects are also a representation of her European background with the blend of the experiences and places that have molded her design sensibilities all these years: A blend of Old and New, of East and West.

Pederosoli is from Rome but moved to the US for college and decided to stay. She graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with BIA & BFA. Her work experience is remarkable. She started at Peter Marino Architect in NYC and followed a few years later at Stephen Miller Siegel & Nannette Brown. She later worked for Ralph Lauren and for the Lauren family’s personal homes, as she describes, “an illuminating and incredible experience”. In the most recent projects Diamante started to collaborate with her longtime friend Carmelina Santoro, an architect. Diamante is currently working both on the East and West coasts on various private projects.

 

CARMELINA SANTORO is an architect from Turin, Italy where she studied and graduated with a Ph.D. in Architecture at the Politecnico University of Torino.

Santoro moved to New York City in 1988 shortly after graduation, where, after a couple of internships, she landed a position at Peter Marino Architect, the architect of Dior, Chanel, LVMH, and many other high-end companies and private clients.

After the joy of what she has often described as her “best design ever,” the birth of her daughter Cecilia, Santoro started working on designing a luxurious new resort, Laluna in Grenada. Through this project, Santoro came to not only discover an incredible place in the world but also the hard work involved in construction, as the onsite project manager for the resort.

While experiencing different levels of design on various New York residential projects and the Caribbean resort, Santoro also had the chance to explore being store planning manager for several Italian corporations in the United States, including Tod’s, Hogan, Bulgari, Ermengildo Zegna, and Brunello Cucinelli.

Carmelina Santoro Designs (CSD) completed their second hotel project in Miami Beach, The Carlton, after completing the new Betsy Hotel, on Ocean Drive, in 2009.

The videos below were recorded via Zoom, are organized by Success Factor, and run between 30 seconds and 11 minutes. Click on any video. You must be connected to the Internet to view the videos.

 

 

EXPOSURE TO BROAD INFLUENCES: 10:34 min.




Where did you grow up and what was your first awareness of art of any discipline?

 

INSIGHT & INSPIRATION:   7:53 min.




Describe your transition from college to your first job.

 

CRITICAL THINKING:  4:32 min.




What is the current status of gender bias in the architecture and interior design professions?

 

INSIGHT & INSPIRATION:  1:13 min.




One of my talents as an artist is the juxtaposition of abstract shapes to create a dynamic tension. Is that something you consider in your work?

 

EXPOSURE TO BROAD INFLUENCES:  4:10 min.




You had the opportunity to work with hands-on craftsmen. What has the new generation of architects and designers lost by being totally digital?

 

SERENDIPITY:  1:16 min.




How did you connect with the owners of The Betsy Hotel in Miami Beach?

 

COLLABORATION: 4:46 min.




What are the pros and cons of being friends and business partners?

 

CRITICAL THINKING:   0:30 sec.




Do you think that gender plays a role in the way that men work with other men and women work with other women?

 

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND:  3:02 min.




Do you become friends with your clients, and in the case of The Betsy, did you become social friends with the owners?

 

CREATIVE FLEXIBILITY:  6:55 min.




What did The Betsy look like the first time you saw it? And how did the vision of possibilities evolve?

 

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND:  3:25 min.




There are some unusual elements of The Betsy that look like obstacles you had to live with. What are the backstories?

 

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND:  2:01 min.




How did the concept of die-cutting poems into a metal sheet railing on the north side of The Betsy evolve?

 

CREATIVE FLEXIBILITY:  2:20 min.




What’s the backstory of “The Orb”?

 

OVERCOMES CHALLENGES TO SUCCEED:  6:18 min.




What are some of the other signature elements of The Betsy that proved challenging?

 

RESILIENCE:  1:42 min.




How have climate change and sea level rise impacted The Betsy?

 

COMMUNITY VALUES:  1:39 min.




Have you experienced severe hurricanes in Miami?

 

UNDERSTANDS ARTISTS’ NEEDS:  4:47 min.




Are your clients willing to invest in and prioritize sustainable initiatives?

 

OVERCOMES CHALLENGES TO SUCCEED:  2:51 min.




Have you ever been in charge of an all-male team and experienced gender bias?