How did Covid-19 pandemic impact on interior design in Spain? What is the transformation which dwelling space is experiencing now? What’s next? Our experts comment.
“Egue y Seta” is a multidisciplinary design studio founded in Barcelona, and has it’s offices also in Madrid and A Coruña. Architects and engineers of their team tell us how do they see the changes of interior design in Spain after the COVID-19 impact.
Interior Design trends 2021
Interior Design trends for this year (2021), and most probably for 2022 as well, will reflect and be the direct consequence of the transformation of the dwelling experience that Covid-19 pandemic has triggered. Therefore, answering one of these questions will also shed light on the other issues.
Let’s take, for instance, the so-called “Broken-plan” trend. Standing for a new twist on the good old “open-plan” lay out, the rise of this trend only implies that some means of versatile partitioning are in high demand within the formerly, fully integrated, single space homes. Could we understand it without the work-from-home, home-schooling, lock-down dynamics the pandemic has imposed on our domestic routines? Hardly.
It seems now rather obvious that the joys of family time, intense parenting, father-son bonding, and mummy time, also benefit from some space and time boundaries. That every member of the family needs their own “corner” to retreat, concentrate, work or daydream their worries (or boredom) away.
Whether these partitions take the shape and size of formal walls, glass sliding doors, heavy curtains or folding screens, will depend on the level of isolation that is required (or on how noisy our children are), but the look, of all these will most probably be also determined by budget and trends.
Making spaces for remote work in dwellings
Let’s also talk about one last trend that is closely related to our new, not so ephemeral, ways of socializing, working or learning from home.
Zoom-proofing or making spaces Zoom-friendly seems to be THE THING to do right know if nothing else is desirable or affordable regarding home improvement.
Revamping or propping up that photogenic corner of your home, to best frame you ever streaming face is not only wise, but the equivalent of dressing up, or “looking the part” when leaving the home is not an option. It is rapidly becoming streaming etiquette. With more or less professional guidance we should be looking into this if we want our corporative image to keep up with the times.
White walls as a backdrop won´t do the trick anymore but busy family shrines are, on the other hand, way too distractive. We need to provide some hints of color, texture, and need to allow for depth. We need to include some distinctively personal items, but also, leave out everything that is excessively intimate or domestic. Natural (or enough) light is as crucial as presenting ourselves properly groomed, from the waste up at least, but distance, the minimum necessary to allow for our shoulder to show in the frame, is also a must.
Sound is quite important too, and not necessarily related to mic – speakers or other sound gear. You might want to upgrade the soundproofing of that area or provide some means of sound absorption in order to lessen reverberation or interference.
Homes have proven to be our best safest refuge, of course. But at the same time, they have become partially exposed, and that may require some “out of the box” thinking.
Thinking “out of the box”. Hold on to that thought. What´s more 2020 or trendier than that?