Studio

About the studio

[01]

Two disciplines, one practice. We founded the studio in 2012 to design the house and everything inside it as a single piece of work.

Today we are a small team of architects and interior designers working from Lisbon on homes around the world. Every project is led by both partners, from the first site visit to the last detail.

The Hartwell & Kessler studio interior — The studio, Lisbon

Partners

[02]

Two partners, two disciplines, one table.

Architecture

Thomas Hartwell

Trained in London and Basel, Thomas spent eight years designing residential projects before co-founding the studio. He leads the architecture of every house, from site analysis to construction drawings.

Interiors

Anna Kessler

Anna came to interiors through furniture design and spent six years in Copenhagen. She shapes how each house is lived in, from the plan of the rooms to the materials, light and objects.

Principles

[03]

What guides every project.

No drawing before a visit

We don’t start a design until we’ve stood on the site, at least twice, at different times of day.

Four houses a year

We take on four new houses a year. When the year is full, we start a waiting list.

Nothing we wouldn’t touch

If a material only looks good from a distance, we don’t use it. Every surface is chosen by hand.

The client lives there, not us

We design around how people actually live, even when it makes a less photogenic house.

Team

[04]

The people behind every drawing.

Leads projects on site and knows every contractor by name.

Portrait of a woman with silver bob haircut, light skin, blue eyes, and makeup, wearing a black blazer over a black top against a plain beige background.

Mara Lindqvist

Associate Architect

Turns early sketches into drawings that can actually be built.

Portrait of a smiling Black man with braided hair and a beard, wearing round glasses, a black shirt, and a black blazer against a plain beige background.

Daniel Okafor

Senior Architect

Starts every room with the light, then the materials.

Portrait of a woman with short platinum blonde hair styled back, wearing a black turtleneck and gold hoop earrings, against a plain beige background.

Sofia Marchetti

Interior Designer

Models every house in 3D before the first meeting.

Portrait of a man with shoulder-length light brown hair and light facial stubble wearing a dark shirt over a black t-shirt, with a neutral background, looking slightly to the side while holding part of his shirt collar.

Jonas Berg

Architect

Sources furniture and objects from small workshops across Europe.

Portrait of a confident woman with sleek black hair tied back in a high ponytail, wearing a sleeveless black turtleneck and bold gold earrings against a plain beige background.

Lea Novak

Interior Designer

Keeps budgets, schedules and clients calm at the same time.

Portrait of a man with a beard and long hair tied in a bun wearing a black sweater against a plain beige background.

Henrik Aalto

Project Manager

Joined from the Lisbon school of architecture in 2024.

Smiling woman with short blonde hair wearing large hoop earrings and a black shirt, holding her head with one hand against a plain background.

Inês Duarte

Junior Architect

Runs the studio, the archive and the coffee machine.

Portrait of a smiling young man with curly dark hair, light facial hair, wearing a black shirt and a small hoop earring, against a plain beige background.

Paul Fischer

Studio Manager

Recognition

[05]

Awards and publications.

Awards

2025

Residential Architecture Award, Shortlist

Stone House

2024

Interior Design of the Year, Private Homes

Terrace House

2023

Sustainable Building Prize

Pavilion House

2022

Young Practice Award

Hale Gallery

2019

Residential Architecture Award, Winner

Harbour Apartment

Publications

2025

Casa Journal, “A House Built Around the Light”

Stone House

2024

Form & Field, “Material Honesty”

Terrace House

2023

Atelier Review, Studio profile

Hartwell & Kessler

2022

Northern Living, “Living in the Pavilion”

Pavilion House