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FEDER
06/15/2021

Clausell Studio

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Vicent Clausell. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

Vicent Clausell. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

BOL basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. IF Design Award winner 2021. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

BOL basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. IF Design Award winner 2021. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

TURE basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. IF Design Award winner 2021. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

TURE basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. IF Design Award winner 2021. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

NOA faucet collection by Clausell Studio for Munk. IF Design Award winner 2021. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

NOA faucet collection by Clausell Studio for Munk. IF Design Award winner 2021. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

NADIR basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

NADIR basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

GRUN bathroom piece by Clausell Studio for Ice DEsign. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

GRUN bathroom piece by Clausell Studio for Ice DEsign. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

SIRA basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

SIRA basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

KRETA basin by Clausell Studio for Ice DEsign. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

KRETA basin by Clausell Studio for Ice DEsign. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

CORK basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

CORK basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

WIRE modular system for the bathroom by Clausell Studio for Ice DEsign. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

WIRE modular system for the bathroom by Clausell Studio for Ice DEsign. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

KALIYA basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

KALIYA basin by Clausell Studio for Sanycess. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

PEDRA wall lamp by Clausell Studio for Carpyen. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

PEDRA wall lamp by Clausell Studio for Carpyen. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

ARBO collection by Clausell Studio. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

ARBO collection by Clausell Studio. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

URNA by Clausell Studio. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

URNA by Clausell Studio. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

PAELLA FACIL kitchen utensils by Clausell Studio for Paella facil. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

PAELLA FACIL kitchen utensils by Clausell Studio for Paella facil. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

CAURA cozy place designed for the company Tekhne at the Milano Design Week 2017. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

CAURA cozy place designed for the company Tekhne at the Milano Design Week 2017. Photo courtesy of Clausell Studio

Vicent Clausell has been involved in product design for more than 17 years. After several years working as an industrial designer in companies in Spain, France and Germany, in 2010 he inaugurated his own design studio "Clausell Studio" in the town of Almassora (Castellón), dedicated to industrial design and advice on product development, as well as covering other related services.

The main premise of the studio is to carry out design projects of a very high technical and aesthetic quality, thanks to an extreme formal simplicity and a painstaking selection of materials, where honesty and functionality of the products are essential. A beautiful blend of passion for the work, the influences received, both local and global, and the client's requirements are simmered in the studio to obtain an exquisite product, the result of a fascinating combination of elements with a Mediterranean flavor.

In his long career as a designer he has worked for Italian, English, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, German and Spanish companies, and his designs have been exhibited in cities such as Milan, Barcelona, Frankfurt, Paris, Valencia and Shanghai. Since its inception, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Exprimidora (Association of designers and creatives of Castellón) and participates in the organization of the multidisciplinary design festival "Besign fest" in Castellón. He also teaches as coordinator of the Intercrea Workshop at the Universitat Jaume I and coordinator of the presence in fairs of the Universitat Politécnica de Valencia.

We chat with Vicent Clausell who talks to us about his vocation and career, his designs and the projects in which he is currently immersed.

Interiors from Spain: Where did your calling for design come from? Any designer who you´d consider a reference?

Vicent Clausell: Since I was a child I liked games in which creativity is involved in a certain way, I spent endless hours with Lego, Tente, Playmobil, plasticine, clay, sand, etc. and that makes your mind get used to generating connections between pieces and ideas, which makes things easier later on. At an early age in school, to channel these concerns my parents signed me up for drawing and painting classes with a local painter, Javier Clausell (who was not family), who had a very refined surrealist style. I remember those moments being the best time of the day for me. I enjoyed reproducing 70's comics with Rotring markers and those comics had such weird stories that I remember imagining travelling through the places they described. And from that enjoyment and disconnection that being in front of a pencil and paper brought me, the decision to study Industrial Design was a very easy one to make, although I also valued architecture which was another field that fascinated me.

And from my beginnings at university, I´d say Dieter Rams was a reference, even if it is a bit of a cliché. At home I had lived with some Braun products, such as the legendary juicer, and I was fascinated by it. Later you add other designers to the list such as the Bouroullec brothers, Patricia Urquiola, Miquel Milá, etc.

Interiors from Spain: Before creating your own studio, you worked in several European countries such as France and Germany. What did you learn from these experiences with international companies and studios?  In what ways did they enrich you as a designer?

Vicent Clausell: Working in another country, out of your comfort zone, should be a must ..., it makes you grow up very quickly as a person and as a professional, working with more difficulties than someone who is a local, not knowing the culture, language, customs, places, makes you surpass the threshold of effort you´ve set for yourself. It is like running with weights, when you take them off and go back to your country of origin, everything seems easy to you because you have become mentally stronger, that´s what I would say is the most remarkable and most noticeable aspect. And on the other hand, you come out of these experiences with many professional and personal contacts, a better knowledge of the languages used, a certain understanding of the cultures with which you have lived and at the same time, you also come back having broken down the mental barriers that you usually have when you leave your home when you have not lived abroad, and you hence have a broader vision of design and the world. All these aspects are very useful in a profession like design, in my opinion.

As for the experience in France, it was a very logical and rational job at Schneider Electric and it took away my fear of working with lots of complex data. In Germany, on the other hand, I was in the studio of German designer Wolf Udo Wagner, from whom I learned firsthand how a product design studio worked from the inside, and being in Frankfurt also helped me, as I got to personally meet the designer Dieter Rams, one of my references at that time, since he lived near there.

Interiors from Spain: How would you define your designs? What is your inspiration for them?
 
Vicent Clausell: We could say that we develop objects of a certain formal simplicity, that transmit a certain naturalness and honesty and that aim to generate an intimate connection between the user and the object.

In general, on the projects we usually work on, the main challenge is to achieve a sculptural and differentiated form while at the same time perfectly fulfills the functional requirements. In both sink and faucet projects, for example, disruptive innovation is rarely sought, so the starting point is usually an investigation of shapes and volumes.

As for inspiration, it usually comes from two great places, on the one hand, from the immediate environment, for example, the studio is near the Mijares river, a small river that is generally accessible, which with its erosive force, transforms and sculpts the elements of our environment, rocks, wood, disused objects, etc. and if you add to this the great variety of plant elements in this environment, it becomes a source of brutal, constant inspiration that also evolves over time. Whenever you get lost in it or on the beach, you can thousands of different elements and shapes to draw inspiration from.

And apart from the natural elements of the environment, we also collect abstract shapes and details from publications or other sources, which we classify and archive for the time when we need formal inspiration, as a starting point for new projects.

In the studio we are also committed to research on new ideas, new materials, techniques, different ways of doing things, etc. independently from routine projects. We call this type of research Claulabs, and they regularly provide us with new knowledge and experiences that can later give rise to new projects, which can be our own or in collaboration with clients, and which can constantly nourish us with new input.

Interiors from Spain: What materials do you work with? Any new ones you would like to experiment with?

Vicent Clausell: At the moment, being quite specialized in the bathroom sector, we work a lot with "Solid Surface" materials , as well as "Gelcoat", because of the formal freedom it allows us, and we are also doing some projects using ceramics. And combined with these, the use of fine woods and metal, both painted and with a rust finish, is very interesting. These mixtures generate very interesting contrasts between perfection and imperfection on both sides. If you use only materials without imperfections, everything is too monotonous and cold, and if you use only materials with imperfections, everything becomes very rustic, the balance of the two parts I think is generally the optimal option.

As new materials to experiment with I always have cement waiting in line for its versatility and glass would also be interesting.

Interiors from Spain: From what we see lately you are specializing mostly in bath products. What is it that attracts you to this sector?

Vicent Clausell: The bathroom sector was there from practically the beginning, in some early works and collaborations in companies like Sanycces, due to the fact that in this area, Castellón, there is a powerful in construction materials, such as ceramics, etc., and bathroom objects give you that volume and complexity that tiles do not have as well as having a sculptural nuance that gives you more creative freedom. I also worked for a while in the lighting sector, which, although I like it and I do not rule out returning to it at some point, when I returned to Castellón I saw that both the furniture sector and the lighting sector, were two areas that were quite flooded with designers and that would make it a bit trickier to work in.

Interiors from Spain: This year you won three IF AWARDS in Germany for two wash basins and a faucet. What does this prestigious international recognition mean for the firm? What did the judges highlight about these designs?

Vicent Clausell: Taking part in the iF awards in this edition has been a great experience, and is already a milestone in the evolution and consolidation of the workshop, as well as it being recognition for the more than 10 years of good work done by the firm. This recognition gives visibility and seriousness to the work done and facilitates future collaborations.

And mainly, according to the feedback we receive from the awards, what stands out the most is its design and originality as well as its functionality and the way in which the functional elements have been integrated, such as the shelves for the faucets in the washbasins or the handle on the faucet.

Interiors from Spain: Tell us about your experience as a teacher and coordinator of the "Intercrea" Workshop at the Universitat Jaume I (UJI) in Castellón. What is the purpose of these workshops and which companies have collaborated?

Vicent Clausell: So far we have collaborated with Porcelanosa, Mobles 114, Diabla (Gandía Blasco Group), Inclass, Peronda, Lebana, and we are currently working with LZF..., a good selection of some of the best companies in the home sector.

Intercrea is a platform for exchange between design students, companies, suppliers and other agents linked to design. This allows each party to learn from the other, whether it be new insights for the companies, or real product development experience for the students, etc., a certain creative symbiosis is allowed to flourish. It´s a great experience for the students as it allows them to complete their portfolio before finishing their studies, with projects very close to that of a professional level and it provides the companies with ideas, visibility and contacts of future professionals, as the students are who are selected each year tend to be more active and interesting ones.

Interiors from Spain: How do you see the new generation of Spanish designers who have just graduated in a time so convulsed by the pandemic? What advice would you give them?

Vicent Clausell: I think the more turbulent things are sometimes, there more opportunities there are for things to appear. It might not seem so at first, but if you are a good observer you can find many opportunities. As regards to myself, I started the study in 2010, the height of the 2008 financial crisis.

The pandemic I think, unlike the 2008 crisis which was much deeper, has not seriously affected the industry. It has a little of course but it will recover very quickly and strongly during the next few years. Likewise, many important technological changes are taking place in different sectors, such as the automotive industry, smart objects, energy self-sufficiency, circular economy, etc. These are very interesting breeding grounds to enter.

As for how I see the new generations of designers, well they seem pretty well prepared, although sometimes a little inattentive, compared to previous generations, due to the large number of distractions that exist today for them, and which sometimes makes it harder for them to get to the essence of what they´re actually doing, and being able to reflect on it. On the other hand they´re perfectly trained in a multitude of new tools that facilitate the work today.

Interiors from Spain: What projects are you working on at the moment? Anything outside of Spain?

Vicent Clausell: I was currently considering a collaboration in the field of sound, for the development of elements that allow us to enjoy music. I think that very fascinating ideas and projects can come out of this; I have always seen it as an interesting medium, although until now the opportunity had not presented itself.

On the other hand, I recently had the opportunity to participate in the Miradors de l'horta festival, in Valencia, with the planning of ephemeral installations, which is another very interesting field, since it deals with more abstract themes and allows us to explore other creative fields, in a much freer way, which until now we had not explored so much.

And we also continue with the development of new sets of bathroom elements for Spanish, English, Russian and Chinese companies.

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