Pep Feliu: 'In interior design, everything depends on use, form and function'

1. How do you propose a space starting from 0?

First of all I wonder why the client has chosen me. You may have done it by previous comments, by my style, by public projects of which I designed, etc. The important thing is to have a sincere and professional dialogue where both parties have to feel comfortable to make real the project imagined by the client. Thank to this method I can contribute from the moment 0.

Initially we have to take into account the use that the user wants to give to this space. According to him/her I have to make a ranking of the sectorized use, this means that in 24 hours we have to know how many are lived in each space to give a certain amplitude agree with the time we spend in each room. Unless our house had been chosen as our  work office, the time we are in the house wake up is around 6 hours.

2. Does the use influence the design decision?

My concept of design is homogeneous and minimalist. It implies that everything has: sense, function and form.  After explaining to the client,the a certain materials election is essential that these were not rare with the object where they will be applied. For example, it would not make sense, a cloth table!.

3. What functions are you frequently asked for?

The function given to a space must be useful and objective to explain in a logical way to the client what materials I will use. For example, in the relax area you must soft materials, such as pillows, while in a study area the materials must be hard: we are thinking on the typical work table . Another key aspect for comfort is the lighting that should be diminished with curtains because sunlight must not be aggressive. Also, I believe that electric light must be segmented according to the purpose that we want to assign to each object where it impacts the light: for instance, it would not make sense to enlighten the TV while it has much sence to place light on the seat where we will read or, enlight the paint we like immediately above, The acoustic comfort is also crucial, specifically the reverberation must be diminished in each one of the impact surfaces  Likewise, the properties of the various materials must be taken into account. For example, if the curtains are raised but the glass is closed the sound will bounce on it.

4. What role does artificial lighting play and to what extent does natural light appear in your designs?

One aspect of the sectorized lighting that I have not mentioned before is that it contributes to the amplitude appearance of a room. Impressions are not real, however, they are our allies -and the client ones-. According to the design we can favor the entrance of natural light with a great extension of windows.

5. How do you deal with the subject of physical accessibility?

Accessibility is an argument for sale and, attention, not only for people with disability, we also have to think about old people. Some improvements / adaptations that they ask me are: to put induction hob and not fire in the kitchen, bathtubs adapted with stainless steel bars and enough width so that they can enter chairs, adjustable showers, also the mechanisms of the doors must be easy, to handle: the  doors have to be rounded in order to make easier to open, the heights can not be more than 70 cm and the doors wide enough for a wheelchair. Beyond that, there are many specific improvements and, above all, my years in the sector have taught me how important this is individualitzation in items adaptation.

6. What priorities do you have when it comes to distribute a space?

It may seem repetitivemhowever is important to underline that I consider the space distribution  at different hours of the day. It is important to ask the client but also to present an orientative division of uses by hours: living in a house is an experience that is justified by the satisfaction that we obtain.

7. How do you pick furniture?

I have a cultural concept and, If you let me make a comparison, there is a lot of "big data" about minimalist interior design and then a personal criteria that I explicitly explain to the client. The type of elements chosen has a lot to do with the cultural concept given and with prestige associated with specific furniture brands and qualities   that I choose. Sometimes, even, I refuse to incorporate elements that do not satisfy my "cultural concept" in projects that I sign. I think that my professional honesty with client must be my priority.

Our first article/interview on interior design has finished: we want you to achieve all type of contents.