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    Isern Serra designs Barcelona modelling agency as a “landscape” for taking photos

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    Pale walls, sculptural furnishings and sunken plant features provide a striking backdrop to photoshoots taking place inside this Barcelona modelling agency, devised by Spanish studio Isern Serra.

    The Blow Models office occupies the ground floor of a 1920s building and its adjoining warehouse in Barcelona’s Sant Martí neighbourhood.
    Isern Serra designed its pared-back interior as “a landscape where the models can take pictures”.
    The Blow Models office centres around conversation pits and a sunken plant featureThe studio began by knocking through the building’s false ceiling and most of the partition walls to make the interior appear more open and airy.
    A long, rectangular skylight was carved out of the ceiling to allow for more natural lighting, and all surfaces were painted in a pale buttermilk hue.

    A long concrete desk accommodates staff computersAs the building doesn’t sit above a basement or car park, the studio took the opportunity to dig down into the site’s foundations.
    At the heart of the office, the floor is now punctuated by three holes. Two of these were turned into cushioned conversation pits while the third overflows with leafy tropical plants.
    “Light and vegetation becomes the centre from which the project is structured,” explained the studio. “[The] unusual and beautiful background is intended to encourage photography.”
    Steel stools were placed around another concrete tableTwo large concrete tables were placed on either side of the office – one functioning as a communal work desk while the other can be used for general staff gatherings, surrounded by steel stools.
    Steel was also used to create a sculptural prep counter in the office’s kitchen.
    The counter in the staff kitchen is also made from steelThe only rooms that are closed off are those used for meetings or by the accounting department.
    Plain white curtains were installed around their perimeter so that they, too, can serve as spaces to photograph models if necessary.
    Formal meeting rooms are closed off from the rest of the floor planTo maintain the office’s open plan, the toilets were tucked away beside the building’s stairwell. Here, an expansive picture window overlooks the street, bisected by a chunky concrete washbasin.
    There’s also a floor-to-ceiling mirror where visiting models can do their makeup.
    Picture windows in the toilets offer views of the streetThis isn’t the only workspace that Isern Serra has devised in Barcelona. Earlier this year, the studio designed a calming, minimalist office for eyewear brand Gigi.
    Back in 2023 the studio also created an office for digital artist Andres Reisinger, finishing its interior with quartz and stainless steel details.
    The photography is by Salva López.

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      Isern Serra completes “serene” office for Spanish eyewear brand

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      Sculptural custom-made furniture adds artistic flourishes to this otherwise minimal showroom and head office, designed by Spanish interiors studio Isern Serra for eyewear brand Gigi Studios.

      Isern Serra was tasked with creating a holistic scheme for the 900-square-metre headquarters, occupying one floor of a building in the town of Sant Cugat del Vallès just north of Barcelona.
      Isern Serra has filled the Gigi Studios headquarters with custom furnitureThe brief called for a design that creates a sense of spaciousness and comfort while reflecting founder Patricia Remo’s vision of Gigi Studios as a brand.
      “It is also serene, warm and elegant and conceptually close to the idea of a studio and away from the concept of a traditional office, without losing the practicality and functionality,” Isern Serra explained.
      Rows of desks were replaced with more intimate work areasThe building’s rectangular floor plan features a central service core housing the lifts and toilets, with the workspaces, meeting rooms, kitchen and showroom occupying the surrounding O-shaped open space.

      Serra and his team positioned the kitchen and showroom at one end of the plan and placed the meeting rooms and client areas at the other, leaving the longer sides open to optimise circulation.
      Concrete bases for the work tables were cast in situVarious bespoke furniture pieces, conceived by Isern Serra as “small works of art”, bring a distinct personality to the different formal and informal spaces.
      These interventions were designed to embody Gigi Studios’ design ethos while standing out against the warm and minimal backdrop.
      “The project aims to experiment with the limits of the workspace and seek a new concept that goes hand in hand with the idea of domus and museum,” Isern Serra explained.
      Curtains can be used to cordon off the lounge areaA large circular sofa framed in stainless steel provides a bold statement in one of the reception areas.
      The sculptural piece fulfils a dual function as a seating area and a space for working, with tables and book storage integrated into the backrest around the perimeter.

      Isern Serra turns renderings into reality to form pink Moco Concept Store in Barcelona

      Similarly, the building’s central core is wrapped in a layer of built-in storage units including circular stainless-steel niches that incorporate shelves for displaying books and materials.
      Rather than a typical office layout with rows of workstations, the large open spaces are separated into more intimate zones with a more domestic scale.
      A Boa Pouf by Sabine Marcelis provides informal seatingNext to the lobby is a design area featuring tables made from concrete that was cast in situ. Task seating surrounds the work table and a taller table is accompanied by stools, while lenses for the different glasses are stored in a custom-made unit.
      The second workspace features a large C-shaped sofa with a concrete base that was also cast in situ. Custom-made tables and one of Sabine Marcelis’s Boa Poufs complete this lounge-style space, which can be visually separated from the rest of the office using curtains on either side.
      The showroom is visible from the office through a circular windowA circular window with rounded edges provides a glimpse of the showroom, which is dominated by two sculptural tables with concrete tops supported by rough chunks of travertine stone.
      A built-in tiered display is used to highlight different Gigi Studios’ eyewear. The rest of the collection is housed in a backlit cabinet, while a mirror-fronted unit conceals a large screen used for presentations.
      The kitchen is located next to the showroom so that the two spaces can easily be used together for events. Here, a homely, Mediterranean feel is created via a five-metre-long sharing table, custom-made alongside the accompanying stools.
      Display tables in the showroom are held up by rough chunks of travertineThe sizeable kitchen island is finished in micro-cement and features a curved base that enhances its sculptural presence.
      A curved corridor incorporating a sofa niche on one wall provides access to offices and a meeting room positioned to have the best views of the surrounding countryside.
      Internal columns are used to support one end of concrete tables built in each of the workspaces, furnished with classic designs including Marcel Breuer’s Wassily and Cesca chairs.
      Large sharing tables allow for communal eating in the kitchenInterior designer Isern Serra founded his self-titled studio in Barcelona in 2008 and works across architecture, interiors and industrial design.
      Previous projects including a rose-coloured shop for Barcelona’s Moco Museum that was based on a computer-generated image and a minimalist office for digital artist Andrés Reisinger, which was named small workplace interior of the year at the 2023 Dezeen Awards.
      The photography is by Salva López with art direction by Aasheen Mittal.

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      Isern Serra turns renderings into reality to form pink Moco Concept Store in Barcelona

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      Design studio Isern Serra has transformed a computer-generated image by digital artist Six N Five into a rose-coloured retail space for the Moco Museum in Barcelona.

      Situated in Barcelona’s El Born neighbourhood, the Moco Museum exclusively exhibits the work of modern artists such as Damien Hirst, Kaws, Yayoi Kusama and Jeff Koons.
      The institution’s eponymous concept store has a similarly contemporary offering, selling a mix of design, fashion and lifestyle goods.
      The store’s interior is completely covered in pink micro-cementIts surreal pink interior started out as a computer-generated image by Six N Five, a digital artist known for envisioning other-worldly dreamscapes in pastel hues.
      Barcelona-based design studio Isern Serra then brought the image to life, using pink micro-cement to achieve the same uniform, ultra-smooth surfaces seen in the drawing.

      Products are displayed inside huge circular display niches”The Moco Concept Store represented an interesting challenge, as I had to combine the purpose of the store with actual architecture remaining true to our original dreamy world I had built in CGI,” explained Six N Five, whose real name is Ezequiel Pini.
      “But these concepts were able to go one level further, both in decisions and execution, thanks to Isern Serra who brought its extraordinary talent and experience.”
      Arched and square niches have also been punctured into the wallsThe store’s rosy interior can be seen through two large openings in its facade – one of them is rectangular, while the other is slightly curved and contains the entrance door.
      A series of chunky columns run through the middle of the space. Surrounding walls have been punctured with arched, square and circular display niches, some of which are dramatically backlit.
      Rows of shelves and a frame for a tv screen have also been made to project from the wall.
      A faux skylight sits directly above pink display plinthsThe store’s largely open floor plan is only interrupted by a few pink cylindrical plinths used to showcase products, and a bespoke pink cashier desk with an integrated computer system.
      Custom spotlights have been installed on the ceiling, along with a faux skylight.
      The store’s custom furnishings, like the cashier desk, are also rendered in pinkAn increasing number of creatives are making their virtual designs a reality.
      Last year, digital artist Andres Reisinger collaborated with furniture brand Moooi to produce a physical version of his Instagram-famous Hortensia chair, which was initially a rendering.
      The piece is covered with 20,000 pink fabric petals, emulating the almost fluffy appearance of a hydrangea flower.
      In Sweden, designer Christoffer Jansson passed off a virtual apartment as an Instagram home renovation project.
      The photography is by Salva Lopez.
      Project credits:
      Authors: Six N Five and Isern SerraBuilder: Tegola Rosso SL

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      Isern Serra creates pared-back office “with seemingly surreal details” for Andrés Reisinger

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      Spanish architecture and interior design studio Isern Serra kept to a material palette of concrete, quartz and stainless steel to create this pared-back office for Reisinger Studio

      Located in the Poblenou neighbourhood in Barcelona, digital artist Andrés Reisinger’s studio is surrounded by several other creative’s offices and is designed to reflect the artist’s minimalist, dreamlike style.
      The Studio Reisinger office is designed to reflect the artist’s minimalist aesthetic”The concept behind the interiors of my studio was to create a space that complements and doesn’t compete with the uplifting spirit of my work,” Reisinger told Dezeen.
      “I wanted the studio to be like a canvas, with a kind of identity that I could play with,” he added. “The space is inspired by my work’s aesthetic, with seemingly surreal details amidst the light and bright studio.”
      Isern Serra left its raw concrete pillars intactPurchased as an empty shell, the Barcelona-based team decided to leave parts of the original space intact such as the concrete pillars while the ceiling was left exposed.

      Natural tones and textures were introduced through paint and flooring to create an airy and monochromatic yet soothing feel.
      A stainless steel kitchen is on the ground floor”First the colour and texture of the walls were chosen,” Isern Serra told Dezeen. “They are finished with a quartz-based paint in the form of a paste,” he added.
      “A natural finishing of micro-cement for the flooring was chosen to have the same tone and textured effect,” Serra said.
      A concrete table can be used for dining and workingThe team then went about filling the space with office equipment and furnishings, paying close attention to sourcing locally made items that reflect the sculptural work of Reisinger Studio.
      A large concrete table, which functions as a workspace and dining table was made on-site and stands in the middle of the studio.
      It was produced in a hue that sits between millennial pink and beige – a colour that has become synonymous with Reisinger’s work. A similar shade can be seen throughtout Reisinger and architect Alba de la Fuente’s virtual residence Winter House.

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      Around the table is a set of chrome metal stools custom-made by designer Julia Esque that complement the stainless steel staircase which curls up the floor above.
      Also in the area below the mezzanine, is a kitchen made entirely of stainless steel that features an integrated hydraulic push-to-open storage system.
      A millennial pink colour palette was used throughoutOn the upper floor, which is fronted by glass, Andrés Reisinger has a private office with a wooden desk for meetings. Plush pink seating here adds a touch of warmth. A separate shower and toilet are also situated on this floor.
      “The goal was to create a space that would inspire, rather than distract, from the work being produced,” explained Reisinger.
      “I imagined the studio as a blank canvas, a place where my team and I could come to experiment, evolve and grow our ideas and projects.”
      The office has a separate meeting roomArgentinian designer Andrés Reisinger founded Reisinger Studio in 2018. The artist is best known for the Hortensia chair, a bulbous pink armchair made with CGI that went viral on Instagram.
      He also made headlines for his collection of “impossible” virtual furniture, which sold for $450,000 at auction.
      The photos are courtesy of Reisinger Studio.

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