Bio:
JENNY BUKOVEC
FOUNDER
In the past decade, Jenny has lived and worked in New York City, focusing on the global Interior Design & Hospitality Industries. After growing up in Cincinnati, Tokyo and Dallas—she studied Interior Architecture at DAAP (UC), and worked with some of the industry’s top Design & Branding agencies: AvroKO, Wilson Associates, and MKG. After five years of Co-op experience, she worked for Rockwell Group for three years. Jenny then spent the next three and a half years building and leading the in-house Design & Creative studio for a Hospitality Management company called Life House. Following this experience (and a brief stint making silk kimonos), she founded her namesake studio in Summer 2022. Today, Jenny & her stellar team are helping their beloved clients build compelling interior environments, strategic brands, and soulful artistic campaigns.
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“I ask a lot of questions, always have. I relish in the deeper meaning of things like black stallions, vast oceans, truffle squid ink pasta, majestic palm trees, melipona honey, and serving bread. Abstract concepts often take new shapes, colors and textures in my imagination. To me, Design is a transference of the meanings that most deeply resonate with my soul, which I seek to share with others. I believe that even the most dilapidated or unimagined environments can be filled with intention and opened with purpose. If you’ve gotten this far into my work, I must believe that what resonates with me, resonates with you.”
Bio:
Andrea lopez leon
DESIGN DIRECTOR
Originally from Bogota, Colombia—Andrea holds degrees in Architecture from the Universidad de Los Andes, and a UX Design degree from General Assembly. She has spent the past 12+ years working for some of NYC’s premiere Hospitality Interior Design firms (Rockwell Group, CRÈME) & Experiential Marketing agencies (BMF), as a Senior Architectural Designer & Project Manager. More recently, she has built out robust social media and brand marketing strategies for lifestyle hospitality brands (Life House, The Manchester), and dabbled in the realm of Digital UX Design in the Healthcare sector. Her varied and extensive experience brings an energetic edge to the studio.
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“Growing up surrounded by architecture in Colombia and frequenting antique shops and vintage markets, I was drawn to the unexpected. This inspired me to explore the unique and unconventional elements within design and vernacular architecture, finding inspiration in the diverse world around me. Travel and research fuel my desire to create spaces with unique atmospheres, always rooted in a deep understanding of the site and the stories of those who will inhabit them.”
Bio:
CARLI GRIMS
INTERIOR ARCHITECTURAL DESIGNER
A native of Philadelphia, Carli brings a unique background of experience in both Hospitality Operations and Design to the team, with a MFA from the New York School of Interior Design and a Bachelor's Degree in Hotel Administration from Cornell University. As a fourth-generation member of her family pursuing her passion within the field of hospitality, she has spent the better part of her life dwelling in restaurants. At the ripe age of 12, she began a career at her family’s restaurant as a coat room attendant, working her way up to a dining room server by age 19. Most recently, Carli worked for 2 years as an Interior Design Assistant at Nate Berkus Associates, with a focus on high end residential interiors in New York City & Palm Springs.
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“Family dinner conversation often revolved around menu development and concept design. I have seen those conversations come to life, watching over 20 open spaces transform before me. Through this, I have learned that the most successful restaurants are those that strike a balance between service, food, and interior design. Guests give the restaurant full reign to provide an experience that includes exceptional fare and service; however, it is my belief that design represents the most essential element during that two-hour window. The design and setting which guests are placed in allows them to feel transported somewhere else, somewhere comforting.”