Wannabe Studios
Self-construction, immediacy, and modifications.
Perhaps three of the most common fears in this profession converge in the renovation of this ground-floor location in the Poblenou neighborhood of Barcelona. It all began with a call from a good friend who proposed that we accompany him in the process of adapting an old surfboard workshop into a photography studio.
From the beginning, the project seemed interesting to us, so without thinking too much and with great enthusiasm, we accepted the challenge. It was a surprise to discover that the call in question was made from the very location we were going to renovate, literally with a hammer in hand to check whether a partition was a wall or structural. This began an intense creative process, with frenetic project drafting, numerous site visits, modifications, and sketches via WhatsApp.
The old surfboard workshop, located on this ground floor, consisted of a long and narrow first space corresponding to the floors above, which then opened up to a large square-shaped space corresponding to the inner courtyard of the plot. In this second space, and thanks to the height of the existing roof, a loft had been built that occupied the entire room, creating a dark, poorly ventilated space filled with pillars.
The first task was to remove a large number of pillars from the loft to allow for longer camera shots without obstacles in between. Next, a cut was made in the flooring, and generous skylights in the roof bathed the studio in natural light. Since it was a studio with the possibility of being rented out, spacious cabinets were designed to store all the technical equipment and leave the space completely clear. Finally, with the dual purpose of unifying the appearance and convenience for a photography studio, everything was painted white.
