Patrick Kinmonth

Patrick Kinmonth left Oxford University with a first class degree in English Literature in 1979. Starting as Arts Editor at Vogue he broadened his scope as an artist to embrace painting, architectural and interior design, opera direction, stage and costume design, fashion curation and critical writing, and he is recognised as a leading international designer of opera, ballet, art and fashion exhibitions.

He has collaborated on frequent design, exhibition, film and fashion projects for Missoni, Fendi, Gucci, Hermes and many others, as well as the restoration of the Wrightsman Galleries at the Metropolitan Museum New York. Last season he designed and curated India in Fashion, a ground-breaking exhibition at Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre in Mumbai. 

Kinmonth made his opera directing debut in 2008 with a lauded staging of Madama Butterfly for Cologne Opera. Since then, he has directed and designed numerous productions. Recent highlights include sets and costumes for La Rondine at Teatro alla Scala and Jenůfa at Opera Ballet Vlaanderen. This season, he designs the sets and costumes for the revival of Alcina at Teatro dell’Opera, directed by Pierre Audi. 

A prolific designer for dance, Kinmonth’s creations with Cathy Marston include Jane Eyre for Northern Ballet (2017, 2025), Snowblind (2018, recently revived in a new version in Hamburg), Summer and Smoke in Houston (2023) and Mrs. Robinson in San Francisco (2022), which will be revived this season at Opernhaus Zürich. 

Often described as ‘a true renaissance man’, and frequently honoured as an outstanding international artist, Kinmonth was voted World Innovator in Design by Wall Street Journal in 2012. He recently became International Editor-at-Large for the World of Interiors and writes frequently about art and design for publications worldwide.