Kara Mann is the founder and creative director of KARA MANN established in 2005 with offices in Chicago and Los Angeles. Over the past fourteen years Mann has acquired thereputation of a cultural vanguard for her study of the possibilities of spatial design while pushing the boundaries of tradition. Her impactful, refined interiors draw inspiration from a myriad of creative fields including art, architecture and fashion, where Mann began her career.
Described by The Wall Street Journal as a “sparkplug in the world of design” Mann juxtaposes formal design elements with unexpected materiality, architecture and an irreverence that has attracted high profile clients in the art, fashion, finance, music and entertainment industries.
A steady stream of residential and commercial projects around the world caught the attention of Gwyneth Paltrow’s goop, which sought her out for a collaboration in Chicago in 2015. The same year she was enlisted to reinvigorate Baker Furniture’s Milling Road line and debuted a collection of furniture that blurred the lines between classical and contemporary. In addition to ongoing residential projects around the world, Mann is currently at work on two high profile furniture collaborations launching in 2020 and several luxury hotel projects throughout the United States.