Designer Marta Castellano worked her magic on a once-sombre Barcelona apartment to turn it into an ultra-bright family home, full of inspiring industrial-luxe ideas.
That’s the brief that Monica and Stefan Ferri sent interior designer Marta Castellano. It might sound like the prescription for a chillingly minimalist interior, devoid of personality, but Marta, who is used to decoding the desires of even the most opaque patrons, knew exactly what the couple had in mind for their Barcelona apartment. ‘Monica and Stefan run a global business and spend most of their time travelling the world for work,’ she explains. ‘They wanted me to create somewhere that contrasted sharply with their everyday lives: a family home that’s modern and clutter-free, but also inviting… A bit Zen.’
A quick scoot around the apartment shows that she’s fulfilled the brief to perfection. Located on the first floor of a turn-of-the-century building, the open-plan space strikes that requisite contemporary but convivial balance. Sofas are low and slouchy and there’s a long, rustic table for family meals. A cosy reading nook is framed by pillars recalling the building’s 19th-century roots. ‘When Monica and Stefan bought the place, it was still two separate flats occupied by a firm of tailors,’ says Marta. ‘It was a mouse house of small, dark rooms with damask wallpaper, wood beams and chandeliers – typically bourgeois Spanish.’
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