A workshop for encounters, art and design.
CHIDY WAYNE & ISERN SERRA
Located in a beautiful cobbled passageway in Barcelona’s Poblenou neighbourhood, Chidy Wayne’s studio workshop is a place of stillness: there’s barely a sound. Sunlight seeps into the central area of this industrial building, casting shadows and climatic shelters in functional areas, such as the office on the mezzanine level, the kitchen under the staircase and the bathroom. Isern Serra, the designer of this space, takes a step forward in his approach to creating workplaces that feel like home – or better. The result is a workshop that is as versatile, unconventional and full of charm as the art that comes to life within its walls.
Whether by fate or chance, just a few minutes before the photo shoot where he met Isern, Chidy came across the industrial building in Poblenou that would become his studio workshop. “We were waiting for Isern when I suddenly got a notification from Idealista [property website].” The rest, as they say, is history; a story infused with design, art and architecture whose narrative speaks of friendship, admiration and respect. This is how Chidy tells it: “The first thing Isern told me was that it was a joint project. I had a clear idea that I wanted a storage area, because I knew that I needed order to allow me to create and also to receive people. See these hidden drawers?” he asks as he points to the wall to the left: “They let me clear and put everything away, and create a clean space in just a few minutes. And when required, I put on my overalls and turn it into a war zone.” Isern explains: “It’s a workshop for an artist I admire and with whom there’s been a very strong connection. That was the challenge: to what extent should the design be an outstanding feature or an accompanying feature? I think we’ve found the right balance by letting the art and the artist make an impact.”
The imposing worktable where we are sitting is a clear reflection of this balance between past and future, between design and craft. “It was in my last studio, but it used to be a workbench that I’ve turned into a desk. I liked the symbolism of bringing something with me from there,” says Chidy. “I didn’t want it all to be new, because that would clash with the spirit of an artist’s studio, a space that gets messy. And it’s an important piece for me.”
“I really liked that this was part of the brief, that it was to be a place of creation for him and his work, but it was also to be a place where lots of things could happen”
After several years of being involved in exhibitions and commissions away from Barcelona, this new workshop has given Chidy the opportunity to intensify his work and connect in another way. “One of my goals was to be able to share my space in a different way. It’s something I am very proud of. Hosting dinners around a central table for between sixteen and twenty people is a very different way of sharing art. If I compare it to an exhibition, where I spend a minute or two with each person, it’s evident that I can speak at length here. I allow everyone to ask me all the questions they want and then let them investigate and gossip amongst themselves. That’s really nice.” Isern was enthusiastic about the idea: “I really liked that this was part of the brief, that it was to be a place of creation for him and his work, but it was also to be a place where lots of things could happen.”
This space has transformed not only Chidy’s relationship with the public but also with his own artistic practice. “It has enabled me to take on larger formats, and it’s allowed me to start working with steel and to use the radial saw because I don’t bother anyone here. It’s like a blank canvas – there’s no better word for it – but much bigger. If something occurs to me, I can make it. And I don’t just have this space: there’s also the courtyard,” he explains.
For the artist, this workshop is like having a new partner to work with, one that makes him feel more focused. Light is the music they both dance to — and only it marks the passing of time. “I used to have a view over the street. I don’t know but do I have plenty of light. This is like a space without time, or where it stands still, where you are aware of time but you don’t hear any sirens. You’re at peace.”
Peter Zumthor once said that the atmosphere of a space is everything. In the case of this studio workshop, this energy was created by the complicity between the designer and the person who inhabits it.
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Issue Nº24
October 2025