DECEMBER 2013
H
business elite canada
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Keith believes that too many
interior designers around the
world have forgotten that sim-
ple does not necessarily mean
stupid. “A lot of interior de-
signers ‘shout.’ They do stuff
that is loud and distracting
and exciting… Your house can
be stimulating but I think it’s
also important that it’s a place
that can be restful. Not sleepy
and boring, but somewhere
that is at peace with itself.”
Keith elaborated, “I believe
home design should strive
for authenticity. For me, that
means creating a home that
both fits the site and provides
a vibrant, light-filled and har-
monious place to live. Often
people get caught up in where
the walls should go; I focus on
where the space should be.”
All that being said, creativ-
ity isn’t just a switch you can
turn on. It has to be carefully
cultivated. “I think that [it’s
not] easy to train people to be
creative. I think you can train
technicalities but I don’t think
it’s as easy to train people to
be creative…[By] thinking of
it as a unique piece that serves
unique people in a unique
place… then that turns into
better projects than if you’re
more technical about it [and
use] that tried and true ‘by
the book’ [technique].”
Despite his success, Mr. Baker
isn’t interested with work-
ing in the commercial sector.
“[My work] is strictly single-
family residential. I don’t even
do multi-family. I don’t do
townhouses or condomini-
ums or whatever. I do single-