Terracotta countertop for a very special kitchen
When the kitchen is the heart of the home, it needs to be injected with style and transformed into a unique space
The kitchen is the heart and soul of many, many homes, and cooking is not the only important thing that goes on there. For many people, the kitchen is a natural meeting place where family members and friends gather to chat over an aperitif, prepare a meal or share a coffee. We can’t think of a better spot for it than a fine terracotta countertop for kitchen.
The owners of the terraced house where Sucursal Urbana recently completed a partial renovation, knew from the very get-go that the kitchen was to be their central protagonist. It was a real honor that Alejandra Calabrese and Julio Muñoz Lorca, the founders of the studio, opted for our artisanal terracotta pieces to breathe life into the property and bring a touch of distinction to such an important part of the home.
Partial renovation for a total transformation
This project was undertaken in 2019 on a terraced house in San Lorenzo del Escorial, in the Community of Madrid. The family wanted to renovate the first floor, doing away with the original layout and creating a unique space with the kitchen as its fulcrum. As this was a second home where the owners would often invite family and friends to come join them and share in their passion for gastronomy, the kitchen was to be a central and very important element of the home.
In order to give it the prominence and importance required of a kitchen designed to be shared and enjoyed, even in smaller dimensions, Alejandra knew from the very beginning that she would need a highly decorative element which would bring strength and personality, yet without being strident or raucous.
Key to a coherent design was figuring out the most central components of the kitchen: the hood and the island. The former needed to be larger in scale, which meant the challenge was to keep its proportions in check and avoid any aesthetic clashes. The latter, on the other hand, would be an essential center of gravity around which people would gather to eat, chat and cook, and so it needed to possess character while still being practical and inviting to use.
In the end, Alejandra opted for a geometric composition using our artisanal terracotta tiles in a combination of different formats and color tonalities. She created her design around our format, combining Prometheus in tonalities of salmón (salmon) and pizarra (slate). She succeeded in creating an elegant, original and eye-catching space where, quite naturally, you just want to linger, chat and savor something tasty.
United around a terracotta countertop for kitchen
One common thread between the philosophy of Sucursal Urbana and what defines our work here at todobarro is an environmental awareness and a great affinity for natural materials. Alejandra and Julio create healthy spaces through their projects within architecture and interior design. They build and restore all kinds of different spaces from a perspective of sustainability, energy efficiency, recycling and green building practices—criteria with which we wholeheartedly identify.
A natural, artisanal and sustainable material such as ours is the perfect match for projects of this variety. More and more companies involved in construction want to bring about a significant change within the sector by making it, once and for all, more sustainable and better for the planet.
Some of these companies got together at the Primera Muestra de la Casa Ecológica (First Expo of the Eco-House), a green building trade fair which was held in Madrid in 2019 and which we hope will soon repeat. After working with us, Sucursal Urbana invited us to share a booth with them, and this ultimately helped to strengthen our professional bond, promising new collaborations in the future.
