Bernhardt Names Summer Thornton as New Designer in Residence

After an incredibly popular debut in 2019, Bernhardt is relaunching its Designer in Residence with inspirational interior design talent Summer Thornton as the April 2022 Designer in Residence. Known for her modern maximalist viewpoint, Thornton (summerthorntondesign.com) will take her turn interpreting the iconic company’s creative legacy, highlighting design excellence with an exclusive reinterpretation of Bernhardt’s gallery and select furnishings.

Debuting April 2-6, Bernhardt’s Designer in Residence will be celebrated in conjunction with the Hearst Design Collection (Elle Decor, House Beautiful, and Veranda). For this spring’s iteration, Veranda and its editor Steele Marcoux will be serving as the exclusive media partner.

“We were excited to see the response to our first Designer in Residence tribute to design,” says Alex Bernhardt Jr., President and CEO of Bernhardt. “Designer Nick Olsen set a high bar with his creative vision. After that amazing and inspiring celebration, we can’t wait to see what Summer Thornton creates for us this April. Our Designer in Residence series is truly honoring the art of creating stunning interiors, and we continue to be inspired here at Bernhardt by these talented interior designers.”

“The only guideline for Bernhardt’s Designer in Residence is that there are no guidelines. This is where imagination and creation are celebrated and revered.” says Gregory Heller, Vice President of Merchandising for Residential Casegoods. “Summer is known for her fearless use of color, pattern, and texture, as well as an ability to bring a fresh point of view to traditional design.”

Chicago-based Summer Thornton is a rising interior design star who has been included on such prestigious lists as the 1stdibs 50, Luxe Gold List, Traditional Home’s 10 New Trads, and Sotheby’s 20 Designers to Watch. With an irreverent spin on traditional design and her bold use of color, Summer has created stunning interiors nationwide and in Mexico, including dramatic beach homes in Naples, a Tuxedo Road estate in Atlanta, a Telluride ski lodge, and a plethora of projects in Chicago’s most exclusive buildings. Her work has been featured in Architectural Digest, Elle Decor, House Beautiful, The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Traditional Home, Modern Luxury Interiors, including several national cover stories.

About Bernhardt

Headquartered in Lenoir, NC, Bernhardt is a luxury heritage brand that has long been associated with iconic furniture design. Founded in 1889 by John Mathias Bernhardt, the company’s history began over 130 years ago. Since then, families of talented artisans and employees have passed down their skills, creativity, and artistry, forming the bedrock of the company. Today, Bernhardt continues that legacy with a passion for inspired design. Led by the family’s 4^th generation, Bernhardt has grown into the country’s largest family-owned furniture company and a leading global furniture manufacturer, with eight manufacturing facilities in North Carolina, six offices overseas, and sales representatives in 50 countries. Characterized by the use of uniquely beautiful materials and an elevated design aesthetic, Bernhardt furnishings are instantly recognizable. They can be found in beautiful homes, hotels, offices, universities, and other fine properties worldwide.

ABOUT VERANDA

This May/June, VERANDA will celebrate 35 years of gracious living with our Self Portraits in Design issue. For nearly four decades, VERANDA has been where exceptional taste lives—delivering style, home, garden, art, travel and entertaining content through a sophisticated, authoritative lens. To celebrate this milestone, VERANDA will unveil a fresh, immersive design with an expanded trim size, focusing on exquisite details and breathing new life into every page.

Gloria Vanderbilt once said, “Decorating is autobiography.” The artist and fashion icon’s words will serve as a creed for our May/June 35th Anniversary issue, our second annual “designer issue.” VERANDA invites our community of highly engaged tastemakers to celebrate with us as we raise the bar in the luxury design category with a best in class magazine.

VERANDA (www.veranda.com) is one of the world’s most exquisitely produced interior design magazines, reaching an audience of 2.7 million (MPA December 2021). VERANDA is published by Hearst Magazines, a unit of Hearst, a leading global, diversified media, information, and services company. Hearst Magazines is one of the world’s largest publishers of magazine media across all platforms, reaching 157 million readers and site visitors each month, with nearly 250 magazine editions and 200 websites around the world, including more than 25 brands in the U.S.. (Source: 2021 comScore Multi-Platform © MRI-Simmons (11-21/F21). Follow @VERANDAmag on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter. VERANDA’s editorial offices are located in Birmingham, Alabama.