Designing Your Own Path: Turning Creative Instinct into a Career

• Discover how to recognise and make the most of opportunities that can move your creative career forward.
• Learn how to balance a distinctive design identity with the practical demands of a client brief.
• Explore how experimentation, feedback and time pressure can strengthen creative decision-making.
• Gain honest insight into building visibility, confidence and a sustainable interior design practice.

Hosted by Academy Creative Producer Fiona Byrne, this exclusive Guild Conversation offers an honest look at the experiences that can transform creative ambition into a working design career. Fiona and Matt will reflect on his journey through BBC One's Interior Design Masters and the development of his own studio, exploring how he approaches briefs, communicates ideas and creates interiors that balance functionality with a strong visual identity. The conversation will also consider the value of taking creative risks, remaining open to unexpected opportunities and building a career that feels authentically your own.

Matt Smith-Wood is an interior designer and finalist of BBC One's Interior Design Masters. Based in Cheltenham, he leads his own design studio and works across residential, commercial and hospitality interiors, as well as product and kitchen design. Influenced by Brutalist architecture and the interplay of light and shadow, Matt's work combines natural materials, texture and sculptural simplicity to create spaces that are both functional and expressive. Since appearing on Interior Design Masters, he has expanded his practice through client commissions, brand collaborations, speaking engagements and curated product ranges, establishing a distinctive voice within contemporary interior design.