Cooper Hewitt says...
Named “America’s Best Interior Designer” by Time Magazine in 2001, the New York City-based Black designer and tastemaker has been creating beautiful, pattern-filled spaces for nearly three decades. She is best known for designing contemporary spaces infused with classical elements and bold prints, including her famous Harlem Toile de Jouy wallpaper skewering Black stereotypes that was first collected by Cooper Hewitt.
After working as an assistant at Shelton, Mindel & Associates, Sheila Bridges founded her own interior design firm in 1994. As Creative Director, Sheila has thoughtfully designed residences and offices for many prominent entertainers, entrepreneurs and business professionals including the 8,300 square foot Harlem offices for former President Bill Clinton and his staff. Sheila Bridges Design, Inc has also completed projects at Columbia University and Princeton University, bringing her signature design aesthetic to interior spaces at both of these prestigious academic institutions.
In 1996, Sheila’s passion for interiors inspired her to design furniture and home furnishings under the name Sheila Bridges Home, Inc. Sheila’s home furnishing collections have been sold to design conscious consumers online, through trade showrooms, mail order catalogues and at such notable national retailers as Anthropologie and Bed, Bath & Beyond. In addition to Cooper Hewitt, her designs have been showcased in many exhibits and museums throughout the country and Europe including the Museum of The City of New York, The Studio Museum in Harlem, the Museum of Art and Design, the Brooklyn Museum, Museé De La Toile De Jouy (Jouy-en-Josas, France), and the Museum of African American History and Culture.
Originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sheila Bridges moved to New York City in 1986. She holds degrees from Brown University and Parsons School of Design, and studied decorative arts at Polimoda in Florence, Italy. She divides her time between Harlem, the Hudson Valley, and Rejkevijk, Iceland, and has since 2018 served as a founding member of the advisory board of the Black Artists + Designers Guild.
