Tag: barcelona

The New Mediterranean

A shared love for plants, handmade products, natural materials, Henri Matisse and the organic shapes found in the Mediterranean architecture and landscapes are just some of the elements that connect a new wave of Barcelona-based creatives and collaborators who are influencing current fashion and art trends. We’ve selected some clothing and accessories brands, shoemakers, illustrators and jewellery labels that represent the aesthetics and values of what we have called ‘The New Mediterranean’.

Paloma Wool

Image via Paloma Wool Instagram

Founded by artist and designer Paloma Lanna, Paloma Wool is described as a “a project on photography, clothing and other experiments”. Paloma Wool’s products are locally made in Barcelona, often collaborating with artists to create items ranging from clothing and jewellery to bags and art books. Paloma also explores “the space or ideas that are created around the act of getting dressed” through art installations and performances in which she also collaborates with other local creatives like art director and photographer Carlota Guerrero, known for her work with Solange.

www.palomawool.com

LEVENS

Image via LEVENS Instagram

Actress Mar del Hoyo is behind LEVENS, a jewellery label founded in 2016. Mar creates ceramic earrings inspired by her fascination for nature and femininity. All LEVENS’ products are handmade, with differences in shape and colour which make them unique. In fact, these ‘imperfections’ are part of the ethos behind this project: “Imperfect pieces that arise from a manual movement, almost intuitive, in which the simplicity of forms and materials are a sign of identity”.

www.levensjewels.com

About Arianne

Image via About Arianne Instagram

About Arianne was one of the first Stories we published on our website. The founders of About Arianne, Ariadna Guirado and Ernest Vidal, have been creating women’s shoes 100% made in Spain since 2010 and have also recently started to design bags. From their shop/studio in Barcelona’s Poble Nou, Ariadna and Ernest produce slow-fashion centred around three values: quality, comfort and design. About Arianne’s shoes and bags are inspired by classic lines and silhouettes which are reinterpreted with a contemporary vision, creating unique and timeless pieces.

www.aboutarianne.com

Tana Latorre

Image via Tana Latorre Instagram

Tana Latorre is an artist and one of the close friends and collaborators of Paloma Wool – she has illustrated clothing and worked together on other art projects with the label’s founder Paloma Lanna. Born in Nairobi, Tana lives in Barcelona and her minimalist drawings of female silhouettes and faces have been reinterpreted by other artists like sculptor Diego Cabezas and the Berber women behind Anou, a project connecting artists with artisans in Morocco.

www.instagram.com/tanalatorre

Matagalan Plantae

Image via Matagalan Plantae Instagram

Born in Costa Rica, Carolina Spencer moved to Barcelona in 2004 and worked as a florist before starting Matagalan Plantae in 2013 as a project exploring the relationship between plants and pots, and their connection to the city. Caroline saw the plant and its container as just one object, and wanted to replace the traditional plastic pot with ceramic vases made by hand in Cataluña in order to create a plant/pot combination more aesthetically pleasing.

www.matagalan.club

Ölend

Image via Ölend Instagram

Fran Rios, Adriana Dumon and Antonio Longás started Ölend with the idea of creating backpacks for themselves, and their friends liked them so much that they decided to start making them on demand. Ölend’s backpacks and bags are inspired by travelling, challenges and mountaineers from the 40’s and 50’s. They are handmade 100% in Barcelona, using only the highest quality materials and sometimes even customised based on the clients’ preferences.

www.olend.net

September 21, 2017
Openhouse Magazine

Founded by Andrew Trotter and Mari Luz Vidal, Openhouse is a biannual magazine dedicated to creative people around the world that open their homes or private spaces to the public to organise different events and activities related to gastronomy, art and design.

We chatted with Andrew about the beginnings of the magazine, opening his house to other people and how Openhouse is bringing like-minded creatives together.

www.openhouse-magazine.com

Photos by Yanina Shevchenko

What made you start Openhouse?

Openhouse, the magazine, grew from our project in Barcelona. We started to open our home as a gallery of photography to share our work in a more intimate way. With our flatmate Nobu Kawagoe, we started making dinner and sushi parties, then concerts and talks. We became quite the talk of the town. Over the three years that we were open, more that 4,500 people passed through our doors.

We met so many wonderful people, some became new friends, and we started to learn about more people around the world with similar projects so we decided to put it down on paper.

The magazine is in English but each article is also written in a different language, depending on the location of the spaces and people you feature. How did you come up with this unique idea and what were the reasons behind it?

I’m English and Mari Luz is Spanish, and we talk with a mix of these languages, sometimes even in one sentence. But we realised people talk easier and open up more when then talk in their own language, so we decided we should always find a writer to interview in the first language of the subject. This way the stories become more intimate and more close, real feelings come out.

How has the magazine evolved since its first issue?

We actually hope the magazine isn’t evolving too much. We don’t want to change, we hope to always talk about these amazing people around the world who humbly share their homes and lives with others. The only change is that it is getting easier and easier for us each day. We have now launched issue No.7 and we are getting used to the business and logistics of having a company.

What do you hope people experience when they read Openhouse?

Openhouse acts as a guide to these people, whether they are in your town or in a place you are visiting. We are so connected in these days by our telephones, that we have lost sense of our community and rarely meet new people. We talk about people who have a love for bringing people together and sharing ideas.

Do you have any plans or projects for the upcoming months that you’d like to share with us?

We will soon open our second house here in Barcelona. A space where we can hold intimate gatherings, talk to people and welcome visitors to stay with us. We are also launching a new web that will make it easier for you to find these people around the world. There will be more stories and local guides.

June 28, 2017
Octaevo

Octaevo is a stationery brand from Barcelona founded by graphic designer and art director Marcel Baer. Octaevo’s products are inspired by the Mediterranean and produced in partnership with artisan workshops using the highest quality materials.

Born in Zurich, Marcel found inspiration to start Octaevo from a a family photo album containing images of his father, Kurt, deep sea diving and Super 8 footage from his Spanish grandmother, Marieta, documenting her trips across the Mediterranean in the early 60’s. This family passion for the sea and, in particular, for the Mediterranean is translated into Octaevo’s pieces, made to be held close and built to last.

We chatted to Marcel about his interest in stationery, design process and favourite places in Barcelona. Read the interview after the images.

www.octaevo.com

Photos by Olga de la Iglesia

You are an art director and graphic designer at Studio Marcel Baer – how did you get interested in stationery and what inspired you to create Octaevo?

I have always been fascinated with printed products and craftsmanship. One day I realized I had amassed a huge archive of stationery I wasn’t even aware of. My passion must have started when I was about 6 years old. My grandfather would take me often to the local stationery shop, where I loved looking at the things on sale. It’s one of my fondest childhood memories. As a designer in Barcelona I am used to working with brands and start-ups. The idea grew to create a project that unites my passion for travelling the Mediterranean and enchanting stories – transforming them into beautifully crafted goods. We now sell in about 20 countries and will present 45 new products this September at Maison&Objet in Paris and then at DesignJunction in London.

We’re very interested in the process of making your products. Where do you source the materials and manufacture the products? Where do you find inspiration for your collections?

From the beginning I have had the mandate to support local producers as much as possible. As a Mediterranean brand we want our products to feel warm. Sourcing the right materials and combining them is a big part of the process. We invest a lot of time finding the right providers and getting to know them. Spending time at printers and workshops is one of the most rewarding aspects of production. A close relationship shows in the results.

Travelling the Mediterranean offers a lot of inspiration as it’s such a dynamic area on the world map! It’s a small sea, but the greatness of its history makes it seem larger than it actually is. Just think of the blue of the sea, the Greek philosophers, the bazaars in Morocco, Fellini, the French Riviera… it’s infinite.

Please tell us a little bit about Barcelona. Do you consider it a creative city? What are your favourite spots in the city?

Barcelona has changed quite a lot over the last few years. The creative scene is definitely reinventing itself and re-emerging. A lot of new restaurants and cafés have opened and as I love food, I am very happy about that. OMA Bistro is currently my favourite. I like the outdoors and gardens, therefore my preferred spots in Barcelona are the Teatre Grec on Montjuic, the Hivernacle garden centre and the terrace of the Hotel Alma.

Who are your favourite local designers and makers we should know about?

I like design that is relevant, mature, contemporary and timeless… There are quite a lot of local designers whose work I admire and I am happy to know some of them personally. Teresa Estapé is a local artist and jeweller that creates beautiful one-off pieces. Woody Allen is one of her clients. Lucia Vergara from Après Ski creates minimal jewellery made of geometric shapes and amazing colours. Ceramic artist Olga Tomas has her studio ¨Atuell¨ in the center of Gracia and also offers workshops besides her own creations . Andrew Trotter and Mari Luz Vidal are the directors of Openhouse Magazine, a publication about people who open their spaces to the public and the life they share -it’s great. When it comes to flowers, Manuela Sosa from Gang and the Wool and Estudio Sauvage make the most beautiful creations in Barcelona. Regarding furniture design, I am a fan of Lobster’s Day by Albert Garcia and the marble design objects by Aparentment… to name just a few.

June 25, 2015
Contributor Profile: Silvia Conde

Meet Silvia Conde, a photographer and art director from Barcelona currently living and working in Berlin. Silvia has collaborated with us twice, documenting Spanish businesses About Arianne and Après Ski for our Projects section.

Read our interview with Silvia after the images.

www.silviaconde.com

How did you get interested in photography and art direction?

A few years ago I studied Advertising in Barcelona. We had a great offer of subjects related to image, graphic design and video. Art Direction was a field I learned thoroughly during the four years of the degree. Photography was certainly basic. Still, it was significantly revealing for me, because it was my first contact with this art.

What made you move to Berlin? How does the city inspire your work?

A friend of mine was considering moving here for a while. I dreamed of London, but that option was overpriced. In her idea, instead, I perceived an opportunity to get to know another language and culture. I had never been here before, in fact I couldn’t speak a word of German. Despite that, it felt like the best choice. And when I look back, I don’t regret it at all.

For someone coming from Barcelona, Berlin can be different in every way. Not only because of its weather, but also the streets, the buildings, the people… This city has another mood. I’m sure it has inspired my work. Maybe not directly, but in a subtle way. A year ago I got accepted in a photography school and that has clearly been a huge input.

What other things do you draw inspiration from?

Mostly people, magazines and the internet.

Please tell us about some of your favourite projects you’ve worked on.

Personal projects are the ones that truly fulfil me. Soft Skin was the first of them and probably still my favourite one.

Are you working on any new project at the moment?

Many, specially since I recently began to freelance full-time. There are some inspiring shootings coming soon, both in Berlin and Barcelona. Let’s see… I’m also very excited about a new Tumblr I created called impressionsdujour.

What are your future plans?

Keep on learning every day and continue working hard.

February 23, 2015