30 Famous Interior Designers Alive and Dead

The world of interior design is constantly evolving, and the industry’s most impactful designers are those who’ve combined timeless ideas with bold and inventive thinking. We’ve put together this famous interior designers list featuring 30 design innovators who have made their mark on the field—and who will continue to shape the way designers approach and improve on their craft.

30 Famous Interior Designers You Should Know

Turning a house into a home is no easy feat. Here are the celebrity interior designers who have raised the bar—and the way we think of what it means to create a truly stunning space.

Current Famous Interior Designers

1. Nate Berkus

You don’t become one of America’s (and Oprah’s) favorite home decorators without some seriously impressive skills. Berkus is one of the most popular interior designers coast-to-coast, and has parlayed his expertise into television—including The Nate Berkus Show and the more recent Nate & Jeremiah By Design.

2. Joanna Gaines

If you want to know who is the most famous interior designer right now, you probably don’t need to look much further than HGTV darling Joanna Gaines, who along with her husband, Chip, has built an empire that encompasses everything from furniture and décor to cupcakes and cookbooks.

3. Justina Blakeney

The Instagram obsession with plant-filled, boho-chic homes is due in part to the amazing influence of designer Justina Blakeney, a tour de force and the founder of popular design blog Jungalow. In addition to her online presence, Blakeney has written a bestseller (The New Bohemians) and created a line of size-inclusive apparel.

4. Peter Marino

Peter Marino has been at the top of every famous interior designers list for more than 40 years. The effortlessly cool architect and fashion legend first came on the scene in 1978, and has since designed some of the most notable retail spaces in the world, from Louis Vuitton and Fendi to Chanel and Dior.

5. Kelly Wearstler

Who is the highest paid interior designer? It might just be Kelly Wearstler, one of the most famous female interior designers of the modern era and an icon once declared by The New Yorker to be “the presiding grande dame of West Coast interior design.”

6. Jonathan Adler

Jonathan Adler is one of those rare celebrity interior designers with instant name recognition, thanks in no small part to his one-of-a-kind style and ubiquity in the retail space, including more than 30 stores around the world.  

7. Emily Henderson

Famous home designer (and Skillshare instructor!) Emily Henderson first came to prominence as the winner of season five of HGTV’s Design Star, and has since written a New York Times bestselling book and gone on to host her very own HGTV series.

8. Thom Filicia

Thom Filicia is another designer who started on TV—in this case, the early rendition of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. From major brand collaborations to a hit Bravo show with fellow Queer Eye alum Carson Kressley, Filicia’s made his mark all over the industry, including with his own line of interior décor products.

9. Tiffany Brooks

Tiffany Brooks took her talent for home staging and turned it into an enviable interior design career that started with a win on season eight of Design Star. She’s since become a network fixture and design expert go-to, with a growing list of high-profile clients.

10. Victoria Hagan

Victoria Hagan is queen of the restrained but luxurious interiors that you’ll find in coastal estates and sophisticated uptown apartments, and has been at the forefront of all-American classic design for more than 25 years.

11. Philippe Starck

French designer Philippe Starck has an ability to turn simple things into cult classics. Innovations include the sustainability concept of “democratic ecology,” which aims to make eco-friendly improvements like wind turbines into accessible, affordable pillars of the home.

12. India Mahdavi

Famous home designer India Mahdavi doesn’t shy away from color—and she’s certainly no stranger to the intersection of interiors and art. Her unique eye has made her an Instagram staple, as well as one of the most famous female interior designers of all time.

13. Bobby Berk

Bobby Berk is one the breakout stars of the recent adaption of Queer Eye on Netflix, with a reputation for creating aspirational but livable interiors. He’s also the creator of an A.R.T. Furniture collection that saw several pieces sell out almost immediately upon release.

14. Martyn Lawrence Bullard

How do you become one of Cher and Elton John’s favorite home decorators? By offering a unique approach to design that pushes the envelope at every turn. Martyn Lawrence Bullard has done just that, with style that lives at the border of grace and rock and roll.

15. Jacques Grange

Jacques Grange lives and breathes opulence, and it comes through in all of the interiors he creates. The French designer has created spaces for Princess Grace of Monaco and Yves Saint Laurent, and has an unmistakable quality that makes anyone want to take a dip in luxury.

Historic Interior Designers

16. Albert Hadley

Albert Hadley was born in 1920, an age of prolific elegance that he seemed to take with him throughout his long and storied career. Some of his highlights: working for Jacqueline Kennedy and JFK, as well as a 1986 induction into the Interior Design Hall of Fame.

17. Syrie Maugham

Syrie Maugham was a celebrant of the baroque style that exemplified her era. And if you’re wondering can an interior designer be rich? Maugham not only preached decadence but once declared, “If you don't have ten thousand dollars to spend, I don't want to waste my time.”

18. Frank Lloyd Wright

Ask “who are the top 10 interior designers of all time?” and Frank Lloyd Wright is almost guaranteed to come up. As well known for his interiors as his architecture, Wright brough provocative design to the forefront of his field and is still well recognized for it to this day.

19. Elsie de Wolfe

In 1938, The New Yorker credited Elsie de Wolfe with “inventing the new fashionable profession of interior decorating,” praise that was well-warranted following de Wolfe’s illustrious career bringing 18th-century French style to the American home.

20. Cecil Beaton

Cecil Beaton was a true Renaissance man. An interior designer, photographer, and Oscar-winning stage and costume designer, the best of his work can be found in Cecil Beaton at Home: An Interior Life—an intimate look at the man behind the magic.

21. David Hicks

Mid-century modern glam comes to life in the work of David Hicks, who was renowned for his mix of modern and antique design. Hicks brought color to previously drab English homes, and a contemporary spin to vintage chic.

22. Gae Aulenti

Gae Aulenti, an Italian architect and decorator, is best known for designing the interior of the Musée d'Orsay, a Paris art gallery. She also lent her genius to the design of furniture, collaborating with a number of famous Italian brands.

23. Sister Parish

If her ongoing legacy is any indication, Sister Parish was an interior designer with her finger on the pulse of what people want to see and feel in their homes. She had a flair for the romantic—plus an approach to her work that was as precise as it was elegant.

24. Paul Williams

One of Southern California’s most prolific designers, Paul Williams was the mind behind such famous interiors as the homes of Frank Sinatra, Barbara Stanwyck, and Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz.

25. Dorothy Draper

She might not have invented the use of color in interior design, but Dorothy Draper certainly made it her mission to brighten up any space she touched. Prints were another mainstay of Draper’s, who was a stark anti-minimalist and a fan of embracing the wild side of design. 

26. Mario Buatta

Nicknamed the “Prince of Chintz,” Mario Buatta wasn’t shy about his love for eccentric design, bringing lush floral prints and the original clutter-core aesthetic into his clients’ homes.

27. Ruby Ross Wood

Ruby Ross Wood was a journalist and decorator who made a name for herself on the New York style scene. She embraced vintage elegance over modern comforts, and was one of the most popular interior designers of her day.

28. Billy Baldwin

A Ruby Ross Wood protégé, Billy Baldwin shared Wood’s passion for opulence—though his most famous work is also his lowest-budget: a living room designed entirely in various shades of red.

29. Julian Abele

Julian Abele was an architect and designer whose distinctive talent is presumed to be at the heart of the design of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In 1942, the museum’s director stated that Abele was "one of the most sensitive designers in America,” and Smithsonian Magazine called him “"probably the most accomplished [black architect] of his era."

30. Angelo Donghia

Angelo Donghia specialized in subtle luxury, and by the time of his death in 1985, the accomplished designer had branched out into furniture, fabrics, and home accessories, with pieces that are still celebrated to this day. 

Delve Into Interior Design Styles

Interior Design Styles: Transitional, Mid-Century Modern, Contemporary, and Farmhouse.

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