A little interview with Luke Edward Hall

“I think that these universes provided a magical, theatrical escape,” says Luke Edward Hall — designer, artist, author and columnist. He’s talking about the myths and legends of the Greco-Roman tradition, and the folklore of Arthurian England. But he might just as well be discussing his own work — a collection of rich, evocative projects that trace a verdant scribble from Bacchus to Bloomsbury via Cecil Beaton and Jean Cocteau.

Now, he has collaborated with Ginori 1735 on a project called ‘Il Viaggio di Nettuno’ — a handsome tableware collection which dives into the mythological depths of the Mediterranean seas. Here, he discusses his inspirations, his motto, and his love of grotto furniture.

Before designing the Ginori collection, I spent some time exploring the collections at the Ashmolean in Oxford, and the Greek and Roman pottery on display inspired some of the motifs we see in the Ginori col- lection, particularly the borders. I’ve been a big fan of the ceramic pieces produced by the Bloomsbury Group for a long time, par- ticularly those made by Duncan Grant and Quentin Bell. I love the boldness of these pieces, and the wonderful mark making. I wanted to this collection to have a similar boldness. The world of Bloomsbury is one of my eternal inspirations.

After researching and visiting museums, I started sketching and trying things out. I passed the final versions on to Ginori so we could begin the process of mocking up designs. Then we worked on the colour pal- ette, and finally it became a game of trial and error. It took a while, but eventually had a collection that felt visually balanced.

I usually wake at 8am, and after a stroll around the garden I’ll answer emails over a pot of tea. Then I’ll take a long bath and think about all of the projects I have going on. Good thoughts and ideas often arrive in the bath. Afterwards I’ll take my dogs for a walk, then head to my studio.

My work is so much about storytelling, and naturally this connects to my love of stories, a love which I’ve had since childhood. As a child, I was very much into fantasy universes, and so the Greco-Roman world of mythical lands and creatures, heroes and quests appealed to me greatly, as well as English folklore and Arthurian legend. I think that these universes provided a kind of magical, theatrical escape. Growing up gay, many of the queer stories connected in particular to the classical world appealed to me greatly, too, a topic which I was able to explore more fully with the release in 2023 of a book I illustrated titled 300,000 Kisses: Tales of Queer Love from the Ancient World.

There’s so much I love about Italy — the architecture of its cities, the countryside, the food, the people. I think that Italy does a great job of preserving its heritage but looking to the future, too.

As a guest at a party, I always appreciate very good food cooked by someone who has put a lot of love and care into it, but real- ly the only thing that truly matters when hosting is making your guests feel at ease. A drink as soon as they come through the door helps. Remember: a tense host creates tense guests! The figure from history I’d most like to have over for supper would be Antinous. I’d like to hear about what really went on between him and Hadrian, and I need to know how he drowned.

I collect quite a lot of bits and bobs. Old and rare books, mostly to do with folklore and magic. Minerals and stones! Grotto furniture — chairs and tables shaped like shells and dolphins. Pottery — I love ag- ateware and slipware in particular... Oh, and old theatre costumes!

We often say “Be a palm tree.” It’s about being able to sway in the wind when things get tricky. We have to sway in the wind or else we’ll break.

The book I most often recommend to people is Queer Saint, a biography of the art patron Peter Watson. Watson helped launch the careers of Francis Bacon, John Craxton and Lucian Freud.

The one thing I wish I had created? That’s extremely difficult to answer. You know, Strawberry Hill House [in Twickenham] just popped into my head. I do love a Gothic themed wedding cake, too.

The best piece of creative advice I’ve been given is keep your blinkers on and trust your heart.

This article was taken from the summer 2025 issue of Gentleman's Journal, which you can read more about here.

Become a Gentleman’s Journal member. Find out more here.