Leonardo da Vinci, the artist who has embodied the very spirit of the Renaissance Era, is said to have uttered the words, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” While this may have been a rather revolutionary statement during da Vinci’s time—a period wherein ornamentation and embellishment were the norm—these words have become the ethos, the cornerstone philosophy for many contemporary designers and architects.
However, for many of us living in major urban centres in the 21st century, the act of simplifying one’s existence seems more like a utopian dream rather than a genuine possibility. This was probably why the owners of a recently renovated holiday home in Deià, a town on the west coast of Mallorca, decided to acquire this particular property—and also why they asked Deià-based design firm More Design to work on its rejuvenation with them.
According to More Design’s creative director Oro del Negro, their client—a designer who is the creative mind behind several hip fashion labels—and her partner, a famous musician, were instantly attracted by the extensive tract of land surrounding the house, as well as its magnificent exposure to the wild coastline.
“The site is well known as the old orchards of Son Bleda farm,” Del Negro says of the location. A key feature of the property was a summer cottage originally built in the ‘70s with a layout that was highly characteristic of the era: open plan with a very basic, practically rudimentary aesthetic. Unfortunately, this also meant that the architectural layout wasn’t just incredibly dated, but it was highly compartmentalised into small areas. It also turned out that building itself was showing signs of the wear and tear wrought by time.