10 Questions With…Interior Designer Denisa Strmiskova

Café KONVIKT is located next to former Baroque chapel in Jesuit convict in Olomouc, with most of the elements in the café combining Baroque religious mystique with secular order and knowledge. Photography by Kubicek Studio.

For Czech interior designer Denisa Strmiskova, 2025 marks 10 years since she founded her eponymous studio in Prague. Today, her award-winning studio puts its distinctive touch on a wide range of projects in the Czech Republic’s capital city and beyond, including cafes, restaurants, hotels, private apartments, and cultural spaces. Influenced by her background in scenography, Strmiskova’s work is defined by her appreciation for lighting and lines, a rational approach combined with an emotional one, and her blend of the historical with the modern, all which result in a highly sensitive approach with a strong atmosphere.

In this celebratory year for the studio, Strmiskova and her multidisciplinary team are moving to a new space in one of her favorite parts of the city. “We will have a nice historic vaulted space with a large storefront facing the street,” she says.

Interior Design chats with Strmiskova about her origins, how her background in scenography continues to play a role in her work, and some dream projects that are related to her love for gastronomy and sailing.

How Denise Strmiskova Puts A Modern Touch On Historical Spaces

Interior Design: How did you find your way into design?

Denise Strmiskova.

Denise Strmiskova: I started to pay more attention to interior design while I was studying scenography at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. While looking for inspiration for my university projects, I came across installations, product design, and furniture through projects in public spaces, which was my master’s thesis, and I began to be fascinated by all of it, including lighting. I also immersed myself in magazines from around the world and started going to European fairs and design weeks, such as Salone Del Mobile in Milan, where I understood how closely the fields of design and scenography are connected in the installations of world brands. After a few years, I worked as an assistant in an interior design studio in Prague, where I learned the practical side of the work. Then, a big chance came and I completed my first independent project, which turned out to be successful and helped me to establish my own studio.

ID: That was Long Story Short, correct? Your breakthrough project.

DS: Yes, my first independent project was the hostel and cafe Long Story Short in Olomouc, Czech Republic, which opened in 2017 in a former fortress from the 17th century. Together with the founder, we wanted to capture the historic details within the building’s 10,000 plus square feet, along with those details that were missing from our own experiences elsewhere; we both like to travel and follow the scene in terms of design and architecture, gastronomy, and the hotel industry.  At the same time, we wanted to create a space where the guests feel comfortable—a space that carries some aesthetic statement and is also maximally functional.

The concept of the hostel was created freely—I let my ideas flow along with the space itself. The use of high-quality materials such as wood, metal and concrete, and their combination with pastel colors, was essential for me. Personally, I like working with lines—drawing fine black lines through the space, custom-made furniture or in various details. Custom-made by local craftsmen, the 50s-70s furniture is mostly Czech, and you can come across a few exceptional pieces that you don’t often see. I combine them with modern elements and shapes, which is an approach that I enjoy and opens up a lot of interesting possibilities.

We also put a lot of time and care into the lighting. My goal was to incorporate the light into the space with absolute subtlety, but, at the same time, in a way that meets the functional requirements. The project was recognized in several important architectural competitions and attracted the attention of international media. Even years later, new clients who visit the hostel and restaurant contact me to say they like it.

Hostel Long Story Short, which offers profoundly stylish accommodation in a pleasant environment, connects the dots between historic and modern lifestyle in the historical center of Olomouc.

ID: Can you say more about you background in scenography? How does it continue to influence your design work today?

DS: Scenography is about affecting all the senses, capturing the moment and emotions. My scenographic background gave me the opportunity to bring in a different perspective to projects. Based on the perception of space in the context of the story, it helps me visualize the atmosphere we want to achieve. It also gave me another way of perceiving the connections in space, which I have been working with since the beginning, when my work as a scenographer began to spill over into interior design.

ID: You describe your studio’s approach as a combination of the rational and the emotional. What does that look like in practice? At the end of the day, do you think one of those approaches defines you and your work more?

DS: For me, the work of an interior designer is an alchemy of both the rational and the emotional, and projects usually flow from one to the other, depending on which phase we are in. At the beginning of each project, a large dose of both principles is needed. We try to perceive all the needs that the client has and the function that the space should fulfill. At the same time, the emotional side is necessary to tune into the emotions that are often difficult for clients to describe, which their space should convey. Sometimes it can be colors, light, materials, or a specific theme.

At the end of the day, I would classify myself more on the emotional side. I like the first stages of the project, when—through empathy and mutual perception—my team and I gradually come to a visual solution for the client’s ideas. I enjoy this process, where everyone brings something to the final form of the project; we influence and direct each other.

In a popular vacation and skiing destination near Harrachov, on the border of the Jizera Mountains and the Krkonoše Mountains in Czech republic, a cottage opened both to the public for accommodation and for free weekends of family and friends of their owners.

ID: Many of your projects are set in Olomouc. What is your relationship to that city, and how does it influence your design?

DS: The historic city of Olomouc is my hometown. I spent 19 years of my life there before I went to university, and thanks to Long Story Short, I returned to the city more. I feel at home there, and it is great to be part of the positive transformation of the city in this way. Not long after completing Long Story Short, I received other opportunities in the city, including an invitation to collaborate with the local, award-winning architectural studio Atelier R. As an external interior designer, I designed the reconstruction and new extensions of the Red Church, which had been used as a book depository for the Olomouc Research Library since 1959, and is a cultural and educational space today.

ID: You have worked on a number of projects for Ambiente, one of Prague’s most well-known restaurant groups. How did that relationship start? What does that relationship look like today?

DS: I was approached to collaborate with the architect Tereza Froňková, who has worked for Ambiente for a long time and designed a number of their successful restaurant concepts. Working for Ambiente gives me the unique opportunity to create an interior space with the help of people from other fields in gastronomy. Everyone contributes their part and know-how; it is a very close collaboration and absolutely connected with design. In recent years, I have participated in both larger and smaller renovations of Ambiente restaurants including Pasta Fresca, Brasileiro, Cafe Savoy, Eska, and Čestr, and UM, the group’s training and education center. In some of these spaces, we are preparing another larger phase of reconstruction or a complete change to the interior, while in some restaurants, it is about ongoing care of the interior and minor functional changes.

Personally, I love cooking and gastronomy. It is my favorite way to spend my free time. I like to cook with my young son, host others and I often relax on the weekend with various cookbooks. So, being able to work with the teams of chefs and other people behind the excellent Ambiente restaurants is great for me. For example, working on the new interior for the workshop and training space for UM inspired me to sign up for their cooking courses this year.

Brasileiro Restaurant is located near the Old Town Square in Prague in the premises of a house that was built at the beginning of the 15th century by connecting two separate buildings.

The location of this town house, through which the path leads to The Rose garden and to Austrian painter Egon Schiele’s studio in Český Krumlov, offers a variety of experiences for a lovely stay in Casarosa; the rest zone of the city has some of the most beautiful views of Český Krumlov, which is on the UNESCO list.

ID: What would you say is the through line, or common thread, that runs through your work?

DS: I approach each project individually, and I wouldn’t say that I follow a certain style or use a characteristic procedure in my designs. I like working on historical building reconstructions that have their own atmosphere and patinas. And I enjoy introducing modern elements to them, which form an interesting relationship with the historical environment. This creates a specific tension and timelessness in the space, and that attracts me.

ID: This year marks 10 years since you founded your studio in 2015. How has the studio evolved?

DS: I learned literally everything in the process of creation and work—how to trust your intuition, imagination, and most importantly, be flexible and creative enough to solve the problems that implementation and construction can bring. In this field, anything can change at any time, and a designer must be ready to immediately offer alternatives. Being flexible and able to communicate new solutions with others calmly is, in my opinion, the most important ability, and the best thing to develop.

Café KONVIKT is located next to former Baroque chapel in Jesuit convict in Olomouc, with most of the elements in the café combining Baroque religious mystique with secular order and knowledge.

ID: What are you working on now?

DS: We currently have several projects in various stages of design. Last year, we prepared the redesign of the popular Prague bakery Antonínovo, and this summer, we will open their new space in an exceptional historical building in Prague’s Vinohrady district. At the same time, we are preparing new projects with Ambiente this year, as mentioned earlier. We also have several interesting private apartments in Prague, Brno, and Bratislava in the process. And in Olomouc, we are working with Atelier R on residential projects also related to gastronomy.

ID: What would be a dream project at this stage?

DS: I would love to work on reconstructing an old spa, or create a new place in the field of wellness and sauna with a strong atmosphere. At the same time, such an environment is about involving all the senses and smells—working with light, warmth, and a feeling of safety and deep relaxation.

Being around water is also relaxing for me, and a few years ago, I was captivated by the world of sailing. I passed my RYA (Royal Yachting Association) exams in Scotland, and I would like to devote more time to this. I can’t think of a better way to spend my vacation from the deck of a sailboat, for example in Greece. My dream come true would be to combine this sailing hobby with work and design the interior of a nice sailboat, while experiencing the process of building the entire boat.

So, my dream client would be someone enlightened in the field of wellness, or an enthusiastic sailor.

The Red Church celebrates a glorious comeback in Olomouc; after more than 60 years, the church no longer serves as a book warehouse, but has become an important cultural hub for the city.

Located near Old Town Square in Prague, 20th century literature author Franz Kafka’s newly renovated home combines classic and modern elements, with hand-made tiles and patinas nodding to his era.

O’Home is a real estate and development company for which we created a modern work environment combining materials that will also be used in the design of their new apartment building project.