ELEANA WALLACE

I have worked as an interior designer for my entire career, about 20 years. I was born in Russia, then moved to Dubai where I lived and worked for 11 years, and now I'm in the United States for about 12 years with dual Russian and American citizenship. I studied architecture but was always drawn more toward interior architecture and large-scale buildings, particularly the interior part rather than the exterior. I really love creating space plans and placing internal walls. What I enjoy most about my work is that it's somewhere on the borderline between creativity and strategic thinking. In my current role, I design branded hotels including Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt, working directly for developers and hotel ownership groups. I also design multifamily developments, usually large-scale projects all over the United States. The operational aspect is quite complex, especially for hotels, and fitting all these operational goals and functions into the open floor plate is actually quite challenging and exciting at the same time. My typical day involves meetings, identifying design direction, creating mood boards, and collaborative work with design consultants, contractors, energy engineers, and architects.