Growing up, the front porch of her home, which unlike the classic American porch was made of concrete, terracotta and metal, had a whole section filled with potted plants. Large ferns in hanging planters showed off their frond(e)s, those beautiful, ancient and complex leaves which till this day are one of the most beautiful memories from her upbringing in Caracas, Venezuela.

Since leaving Venezuela, Esther has resided in New York City, dedicating her professional life to design, either through her studies, her work as an interior designer or her academic practice as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Pratt Institute’s Industrial Design Department. During the decade leading to the founding of Studio Fronde, Esther co-led the interior design and architecture studio 4|MATIV alongside architect Priya Patel. Some of the most fulfilling and successful projects from that time are showcased here.

Esther’s practice as a designer is centered around the concepts of honesty, communication, function and beauty in the experiences we create to improve our lives. These experiences can be supported by physical expressions of any scale and kind, and through any medium.

In 2023, Esther Beke founded Studio Fronde, a design practice guided by an Ethos developed through years of observation, experience and development of work. The Studio’s work is rooted in the design of spaces, with branches extending into the design of objects and graphics.