A playful converted warehouse custom-designed for an artist

Designed by architect Pía Mendaro for artist Clara Cebrian, this barebones but whimsical live-work studio is what happens when architecture meets art.

In converting the roughly 1,000-square-foot, almost perfectly square warehouse space, Mendaro took advantage of its soaring ceilings and sprawling layout by leaving everything pretty much as-is, except for adding a couple of choice details.

“Clara is an artist and does not like overly designed things,” Mendaro says. “She wanted something ‘like Ron Weasley’s house’; something that could adapt to the needs that appear over time.”

Manuel Ocaña

The main intervention is an elevated platform bed, a collaboration between Mendaro and architect Manuel Ocaña. This unusual resting space is suspended from the ceiling in a cage-like structure that can support up to five people. Accessing the bed requires climbing up a set of portable, floating stairs—at least there’s a railing.

On the bed platform, there’s another set of stairs that leads to an outdoor space. Underneath the platform, a hammock dangles from the structure while couch is tucked into the corner. A bathroom is hidden by a wall and a kitchenette also takes up little real estate. In other words, the warehouse remains more or less a blank canvas, with plenty of room for artistic interpretation.

Manuel Ocaña