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Telling stories by design is his passionate pursuit
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WHO is he?
Jose Ja Ja Ja is an architect, brewer with his brothers, illustrator and comic drawer, but deep down he is a storyteller. To design a house is just like writing a story about the life of the client in the next 20 years. And there is not much difference compared to making a children’s book.
Tell us some of your works, and the name of one you are most proud of.
One of my favorite works was “Silent Manifest.” I collaborated with Chinese-born architect Wu Ruohong. This project was for an art festival in Cuenca, Spain, where we had to construct something ephemeral in relation to a very poor neighborhood. And the budget was very low. We decided to restore the collective memory of this neighborhood, to reveal the stories that were never written, the stories and anecdotes that tell us about our grandparents, our parents, our neighbors. To achieve this, we transformed a very old house into a piece of art by covering it completely with mylar gold fabric pieces. At the day of finishing, we organized a procession with local folk music to call up all the local people. The procession finished at “the house of gold” and every person had to write one of their past stories behind every gold piece. As each piece of gold fabric was half attached to the surface of the building, the texts could only be seen when the wind flips over the paper. With numerous papers dancing rhythmically with movement of the air, we transformed the old house into a monument of memory, that sometimes appear, some times disappear. The exciting moment was that when all people collaborated with us, no matter children or the elders, and when people cried, laughed with the project, and they agreed it was art for the people.
Are you currently involved with a project?
I’m designing a beer factory for the brand I have with my brothers, Salvaje beer. Every beer we create is specialized for exclusive dishes cooked only by the best Spanish chefs, with two or three Michelin stars. So we mix the concepts, beer with high cuisine. Rather than a factory, it will be like a place to taste the beer and eat specific dishes while watching the beer-making process.
Describe your design style.
Every project must be able to tell a story. And this story has to be not only in the concept or idea, it has to be considered in every detail — the material used or even the type of screw used for joining the wood. To design is to tell stories and to tell stories is to construct.
Where are you more creative?
When I keep on working and working is when and where I am more creative.
Where would you like to go in Shanghai?
I’m completely amazed by these areas with very old neighborhoods, where there are a lot of old buildings destroyed and then joined into new bizarre “fashion” creations. These areas have hidden beauty.
What will be the next big design trend?
“Just do it.” When we specialize, the process of constructing things is absolutely complex, because every time there are more people involved into the process. Take chair as an example. In the past simply a carpenter would construct a chair for a family. Now we need a designer, a man to cut the wood, a man to put in the screws, a professional to control the quality of the chair, the transport to the shop, the seller and the consumer. The complexity is cost, and with time, people will find all media to do it by themselves. I think the next trend is in the intelligence of individuals.
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