Richard Hawker, erstwhile co-founder of The Garb Wire happened to be travelling to Spain last week, so we agreed that would I scope out some local makers and creative spaces ahead of time, and send him on a Barcelona discovery mission.
There wasn’t any real guarantee that Rich would venture outside during daylight hours, given he was there to work, but the main challenge was removing the man from his accommodations at Hotel Arts Barcelona, with this area for relaxation. I mean.
These are just 10 brands I discovered that are made in Barcelona:
Jakuna Matata
Jakuna Matata is a street artist I stumbled upon via Instagram using the hashtag ‘madeinbarcelona’. Vibrantly painted soft drink cans are assembled and fixed to walls in the streets with endearing messages or arranged simply in artful formation. Further investigation into the artist’s identity or works yielded absolutely nothing, which instantly makes the work more intriguing. And really very sweet.
Here are ten other street artists to look out for via The Culture Trip https://theculturetrip.com/europe/spain/articles/10-barcelona-street-artists-you-need-to-know/
Nina Yoga & Duffle Bags
Nina Adams‘ bags are essentially simple shapes, but it’s the colour tones and playful patterns that win me over. The way the product is photographed is stunning. When I was looking for stockists, I came across the luxury Hotel Brummel, a place I will dream of visiting forever, and an indicator of the level of style this brand quietly commands.
pols ceramic
pols ceramics are handmade in Barcelona. When I contacted the brand directly on Instagram, they led me on another path of discovery to divinely curated concept stores and stockists – local fashion brand and retail space Name: at La Tercera and specialist cooking store Claudia & Julia.
Punto Blanco
Punto Blanco is a 50 year old company that producers and sells the smalls. Socks, underwear etc. They pride themselves on a production process that begins with raw materials, turning them into fashion products via their eight manufacturing plants in Colombia. Some of the products they range are very minimalist (basic), but they recently did a print collaboration called #createthemoment with Columbian Art and Clothing brand Comes Cake, based in Bogotá, which is more lively.
The Wandering Orion
The Wandering Orion has produced ‘household supplies’ since 2014. It reads very utilitarian, but their assorted pennants, lapel pins and oddments are anything but daily drabness. When I contact The Wandering Orion via Instagram and they pointed me to their stockists, including OMG BCN, a creative space that sells inspired products made in Barcelona.
Jose Aroda
The work of Madrid Jose Aroda artist is probably my favourite discovery that I made without even leaving Melbourne. He was lovely when we made contact, and when I got familiar with his work I realised that he was also stocked at OMG BCN.
Laia Figuerola
Laia Figuerola is handbag designer working under the name TONA. Her use of soft chunky rope with leather in nudes and blush are stunning. Apparently the maker has an atelier in Barcelona, but I didn’t get far enough in time to find out where. You can find her on Instagram.
Agustina
Agustina Flores is a creative studio with its own brand inspired by the essence of Mediterranean life, and it focusses on the masterful power of pattern, and clashing them well. They are bold, graphic, sunny and pretty but not too cutesy. Austin fabrics are stocked at the beautiful treasure trove Mar de Cava and an arty concept store called Passage which has a gallery out the back.
Es Par Ta
Es Par Ta Espadrilles. Super stylised presentation of neutrals with bold clashing colours like red, yellow, black and blue. Espadrilles are always in style where the sun shines.
Matímañana
Matímañana is a collection of products designed by Barcelona locals Oriol Blanc & Carlota Prats. Their wood and ceramic coffee cups & saucers caught our eye. Guess what? They are also stocked at OMG BCN. A path was being paved for Richard, before he even set foot outside Hotel Arts.
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