Henry Liska

HENRY LISKA WAS CAPTIVATED BY THE BEAUTY OF ROOMS AND SPACES EVEN BEFORE HE COULD WALK.

Henry’s earliest memories still charm him today: as an infant he fell in love with his family’s black and white tiled bathroom in Vienna.

Since the founding in 1980 of his self-named Toronto Interior Design firm, an international clientele of celebrities has leveraged Henry Liska’s talent to create memorable expressions of contemporary luxury that never fails to maximize value.

Henry Liska is at home throughout the world: together with his company, he has added creative solutions to projects in Canada and the United States, Bermuda, the Caribbean, Central America, Europe, North Africa, China and South East Asia.

SOME OF MY WORK

ALL THE ROOMS AND SPACES I CREATE ARE UNIQUE, CHIC AND WITHOUT PARALLEL.

I CREATED THE MASCULINE, NAUTICALLY-THEMED ELEVATOR LOBBY PICTURED TO THE RIGHT FOR THE CHAIRMAN OF AN INTERNATIONAL HEDGE FUND IN BERMUDA.

Having one’s home or office outfitted with a private elevator is still a relatively uncommon luxury. During my career, I have designed five, from the instantly recognizable filmmakers headquartered in Toronto’s Flat Iron Building to the current owner of the former United States Consul General’s WWII residence and secret code room in Toronto’s Lawrence Park.

HENRY LISKA TRANSFORMS A VICTORIAN-ERA HOME'S MOST INTIMATE SPACE WITH SIMPLICITY AND ELEGANCE ...

Michelangelo’s David is considered a masterpiece by just about everyone. When asked how he was able to chip away this marvel from the surrounding block of marble, Michelangelo remarked that the statue was always there; he just freed it from the stone and allowed it to become visible.

In the same vein, I was able to create the spectacular modern shower room pictured to the left using only the most necessary of design elements, such as the grey pulpis marble backdrop behind the shower and the scant water screen between the shower and steeping tub.

HENRY LISKA HAS WORKED ON MANY INTERNATIONAL DESIGN PROJECTS. THIS ONE, IN BERMUDA, STANDS OUT IN HIS MEMORY AS ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL.

Together with Architect John D. Watson, Henry spent six months breathing new life into the beautiful Aqua Marina on Bermuda’s south shore. Although the grounds of the villa are extensive, the house itself is not large. Henry decided, therefore, to add to the estate’s entertainment options by creating an open air pavilion on top of the property’s tall, south facing cliff overlooking Warwick Long Bay.

For the walls, Henry chose perforated mahogany panels carved in West Africa. Although crudely fashioned, the screens were finished with great finesse by master painter Douglas Mitchell using a simple emulsion of lime and water.

In homage to the homeowner’s Athenian ancestry, Henry modeled the dining table and serving cabinets on the mid-nineteenth century Hellenic furniture that she adored. As Henry was also working in London at that time, it was easy for him to scout that city’s antique dealers for inspiration. Almost as soon as he started looking, Henry found a suite of neo-classic Hellenic dressing furniture at Carlton Hobbs and based the domed silverware cabinets and dining table on the Queen’s vanity.

WHEN HENRY LISKA HAD THIS PHOTO TAKEN FOR AN ARTICLE IN TORONTO LIFE, HIS YOUNG POWER COUPLE CLIENTS HAD PROVIDED HIM WITH MANY EXCEPTIONAL PIECES OF ART TO DECORATE THEIR NORTH TORONTO VILLA.

Most beautiful among these: a circa 1774 Federal Style wall canvas that Henry installed in the front vestibule, a Baroque wall canvas of dogs and sturdy looking men hunting that Henry mounted in the Dining Room and a neo-Egyptian style planter that he kept filled with weekly changing flowers crafted by Bruce Philpott.

HENRY IS A HANDS-ON INTERIOR DESIGNER WHO PREFERS TO CREATE HIS OWN ORIGINAL FURNITURE AND ART HE CAN USE TO FINISH HIS PROJECTS WITH.

As a graduate student just entering the workforce, Henry always found it interests him more to design his own furniture than it does to work with mass produced wares. This goes for furniture of all kinds, riveting accessories, carpets, and commissioned artwork. Henry also believes that the older a piece is, the more age bestows it with a special “kind of magic“. And that antiques, in general, make the best kind of furniture of all.

Carol Sebert of Creative Matters worked closely with Henry to put together the near magical lines of this area rug made in Thailand that draws inspiration from the karmic powers of the of the Chakra.

FROM THE START, WHEN HENRY HAD A MEN’S SHOWER ROOM AND SPA WRITTEN UP BY CAROLINA VYNAK IN THE FIRST COLOUR HOME SECTION IN THE TORONTO STAR IN THE LATE 1970’S, HENRY HAS BEEN KNOWN FOR CREATING EXCEPTIONAL, ONE-OF-A-KIND BATHROOMS AND SPAS THAT FEATURE BEAUTIFUL, SOMETIMES RARE AND COSTLY FINISHES SUCH AS MARBLE, ONYX, GOLD AND SILVER LEAF, BRASS AND STAINLESS STEEL.

The rendering to the left represents Henry’s vision for the in-house shower room that Henry saw attached to the office of the President of George Soros’ trading room in Hamilton, Bermuda. One can clearly see Henry’s craft come to the fore in the clean but stylized lines of the Empire style detailing of the shower, toilet room and vanity. The modern use of Emperador marble combined with gold and silver plate in a contemporary setting that harkens to a time past clearly show off this this room as one of Henry Liska’s most successful designs.

View More of Henry's Work

Past Clients

The following are some of the distinguished clients that Meritor has had the pleasure to assist:

Earle and Bernadette McMaster, Toronto
Amrou Dalloul, London
John Swan, Bermuda
Rick North and Monique Kack-North, Scottsdale Stephan Strasser, Bermuda
The Granite Group of Companies, Toronto
Dr. R. Wallace Stonehouse, Toronto
Kate Grayken, Bermuda
CanAm Solutions, Mississauga and San Diego Wolf Advertising, Toronto
Shahin Alizadeh, Toronto
Il Posto Ristorante, (Yorkville) Toronto
Warren and Ann Brown Bermuda
Carisma Motor Cars, Toronto

Andre Demarais and France Cretien-Desmarais, Toronto
Eva Maria Zouppas, Bermuda, New York City and Athens Mickey Cohen and Judy Loeb-Cohen, Toronto
Hang Singh III, Singapore
David Kroft, Toronto
H.R.H. Ashraf Pahlavi, Paris
Lawrence and Mary Wolf, Toronto
Ross Capital Investments Limited, Bermuda
Barzel Industries Limited, Toronto and Mississauga
Terre Rouge Bistro Marché, Charlottetown, PEI
Prego della Piazzo, (Yorkville) Toronto (Courtyard Terrace) OBM Architects, Turks and Caicos Islands, BWI
OBM Architects, Grand Cayman Island, BWI

David Geneen and Florence Minz-Geneen
Donald Loeb and Lorraine Loeb, Toronto
Prego Della Piazza, Toronto
Diamonte Development Corporation, Toronto
Peter and Dana Puhl, Rancho Santa Fe, CA
Navin Chandaria, Toronto
Arthur Erickson, Toronto
Normandy Asset Management Limited, New York City Nexus Capital Inc., A Soros Investment Partnership, Bermuda B L Ú Ristorante + Lounge, (Yorkville) Toronto
Pink Beach Club, Bermuda
MPI Group of Companies, Toronto
The Downtown Automotive Group, Toronto

High Innovative Interior Designing

Compellingly synthesize installed base process improvements.