{"id":29672,"date":"2026-05-26T08:08:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T08:08:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/29672\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T08:08:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T08:08:17","slug":"tile-clad-japanese-buildings-inform-self-designed-office-in-valencia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/29672\/","title":{"rendered":"Tile-clad Japanese buildings inform self-designed office in Valencia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Architect Paloma Bau<\/a> and creative director Ausi\u00e0s P\u00e9rez have collaborated on designing their shared office in Valencia<\/a>, Spain, featuring a large communal kitchen and tiled spaces that draw on Tokyo architecture.<\/p>\n

Sornells 21 is named after its address in the city’s Ruzafa neighbourhood and was designed by Bau<\/a> and P\u00e9rez<\/a> as a space where their studios can operate independently but come together to socialise.<\/p>\n

\"EntrancePaloma Bau and Ausi\u00e0s P\u00e9rez have designed their shared office<\/p>\n

The two friends worked together to develop a design based on their shared passion for Japanese architecture and culture, with P\u00e9rez’s T.O.T Studio<\/a> providing the overall concept and Bau handling the architectural project.<\/p>\n

Bau told Dezeen that the initial idea was to evoke an izakaya \u2013 a relaxed style of bar serving drinks and sharing plates in downtown Tokyo.<\/p>\n

\"VinylA vinyl listening area is among the amenities<\/p>\n

“Our approach was to transform the space into a large bar that embraces the entire surface, with the kitchen as its nerve centre,” she explained.<\/p>\n

“As the project evolved, however, new ideas emerged and new spaces took shape, each taking us to different places in Japan.”<\/p>\n

\"BarThe office is organised around a large shared kitchen<\/p>\n

Other Japanese influences that define the interior include Tokyo’s tiled facades and pavements, as well as the calming atmosphere of traditional onsen bathing facilities.<\/p>\n

The 170-square-metre U-shaped space provides dual street access at either end, with Bau’s studio occupying one side and P\u00e9rez’s the other, while the central area houses the kitchen and meeting space.<\/p>\n

\"KitchenAt its centre is a 7.2-metre-long table<\/p>\n

The entrance zones introduce the project’s Japanese theme, with white ceramic tiles forming a threshold that is emphasised on one side by a large ceiling mirror.<\/p>\n

The covered entrance also features a tiled table and a bench made from white-painted concrete blocks \u2013 a material that recurs throughout the interior.<\/p>\n

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Office areas on either side of the floor plan are lined with tatami-informed benches for casual seating, some of which incorporate planters for an extra layer of functionality.<\/p>\n

The kitchen situated to the rear of the space is organised around a 7.2-metre-long, partially cantilevered table featuring a steel structure and concrete block legs that support a surface made from black San Vicente stone.<\/p>\n

\"TiledA small stair concealed behind the kitchen panelling leads to a meeting room<\/p>\n

The bar is illuminated by a bespoke luminaire informed by the traditional noren curtains that mark the thresholds of Japanese taverns and shops.<\/p>\n

A small stair concealed behind the kitchen panelling leads to a meeting room featuring vibrant pops of pink and blue and playful details that contrast with the pared-back sobriety of the main workspace.<\/p>\n

\"TiledIt features vibrant pops of colour and playful details<\/p>\n

Shower-head light fixtures, mirrors flanked by bathroom handrails and a false skylight positioned above a small planter lend the space an illusory feel that Bau described as “pure fun”.<\/p>\n

“Traditional onsen often carry a slightly absurd, even comical quality,” she pointed out. “We wanted to embrace that spirit by creating a space that stands out and gives us the freedom to design playfully \u2013 almost with a childlike sense of curiosity.”<\/p>\n

\"TiledThe tiled meeting space was inspired by Japanese onsens<\/p>\n

Bau explained that the project’s predominantly restrained material palette, balanced with impactful moments such as the meeting room and bright red bathrooms, creates a sensory journey that avoids explicitly referencing familiar Japanese design cues.<\/p>\n

“While tiles may be the most recognisable element of Japanese architecture, the remaining materials are not meant as literal references, but as expressions of its underlying ideology,” she claimed.<\/p>\n

“The emphasis lies not in the materials themselves, but in their encounters: in the shapes, the contrasts and ultimately in the atmosphere the space conveys.”<\/p>\n

\"MirrorsPlayful lights resemble shower heads<\/p>\n

In addition to its everyday role as a dual studio space, Sornells 21 provides a place for community gatherings, events and exhibitions. Flexible furniture, curtains and hanging rails for displaying artworks ensure the space can easily adapt to these various programmatic requirements.<\/p>\n

Bau’s studio adopts a narrative-based approach to its work in the fields of interior design, retail and full-scale renovations, resulting in projects with a focus on craftsmanship and intelligent detailing.<\/p>\n

The studio’s previous work includes the renovation of a 1920s home<\/a> that preserves its Mediterranean character, and an update to a seaside apartment that incorporates East Asian influences<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Architect Paloma Bau and creative director Ausi\u00e0s P\u00e9rez have collaborated on designing their shared office in Valencia, Spain,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":29673,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[8788,14874,14875,13726,14564,14873,17,95],"class_list":["post-29672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-valencia","tag-interiors","tag-office-interiors","tag-paloma-bau","tag-sectionall","tag-sectioninteriors","tag-self-designed-studios","tag-spain","tag-valencia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29672"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29672\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}