CASA TRANQUILA

Latin music superstar J Balvin crafts a pair of eminently quiet, contemplative refuges in his native Colombia with the help of Medellín-based design firm 5 Sólidos

- MAYER RUS

Nobody rocks a tie-dyed ensemble and rainbow-coloured leopard- print hair quite like Latin music superstar J Balvin, aka José Álvaro Osorio Balvin. The record-breaking Colombian singer sported the natty look at the 2019 iteration of Coachella, delighting legions of fans obsessed with his addictive reggaeton beats as well as his intrepid fashion sense, which runs the gamut from polychromatic streetwear to haute couture. Those same fans might be surprised to discover that on the home front, Balvin eschews giddy theatrics and prismatic finery in favour of minimalist cool and Japanese-inflected decorative restraint. His loft in Medellín and his country retreat in Llanogrande, 30 minutes from the city, are object lessons in the poetics of simplicity.

“Architecture, music, fashion – they’re all forms of expression. When it comes to the places I live, I definitely take a less-is-more approach,” says the Latin Grammy Award-winning artist. “A house should be a place where you can rest your spirit. I’ve tried to create places that feed my soul, not my ego,” he avers.