VALENTIN GARAL.Valentin Garcia Alcocer

Archive / 2008 to 2015

I used to
design.

I started my career as an industrial designer. At 22 I became Creative Director of Galería Mexicana de Diseño in Mexico City and ran my own studio, designing furniture, objects and spaces.

That work won awards, was exhibited in museums and published internationally. Then I realised the method mattered more to me than the object. I no longer design products; I design strategies. This archive stays here because it is where everything started.

Awards

INJUVE Award, Best Young Spanish Designer (accésit)
Quórum Award, Best Mexican Furniture Design

Exhibited at

Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City
Museo Franz Mayer, Mexico City
CentroCentro, Madrid City Hall

Published in

The New York Times, AD Russia, Elle, Dezeen, Designboom, Design Milk, ArchDaily

Humilité by Valentin Garal

Humilité

2015

Carpet / Pure Spanish wool / Andalucía

Limited edition carpet whose golden-ratio geometry evokes the faces of grandparents. Exhibited at CentroCentro, Madrid City Hall.

IBDF by Valentin Garal

IBDF

2013

Identity & art direction / Mexico City

Identity for a design business fair, co-created with Franklin Asociados, built on classic wooden joints as a metaphor for industry alliances.

Animam by Valentin Garal

Animam

2013

Meditation cubicle / Burnt MDF / Mexico

A room for purifying the soul, commissioned by Masisa and Glocal Design Magazine, with MDF charred using the Japanese yakisugi technique.

Stilleven by Valentin Garal

Stilleven

2013

Wall desk, display & mirror / Walnut / Guadalajara

A piece for PECA that turns personal collections into a public still life: wool display, walnut desk and mirror in one object.

Salvum by Valentin Garal

Salvum

2013

Home altar / Marble / Mexico

A contemporary altar for offerings of any faith, designed for Zafra, reclaiming the sacred corner that homes once had.

V100 by Valentin Garal

V100

2011

Vase / Recycled marble / Puebla

A numbered edition of 100 vases made from discarded quarry offcuts, a brutalist take on what luxury really means.

Banca Familiar by Valentin Garal

Banca Familiar

2011

Bench / Solid willow wood / Guadalajara

A hand-crafted bench for Le Porc-Shop, conceived as a meeting point to preserve family ties.

XXY by Valentin Garal

XXY

2010

Door handle series / Turned ash / France

Handles designed around people with disabilities as the starting point, claiming their right to a luxurious lifestyle.

Featured in.

Scroll sideways →

The New York Times feature on Family Bench — The New York TimesFamily Bench

AD Russia feature on Family Bench — AD RussiaFamily Bench

Elle Extra China feature on Family Bench — Elle Extra ChinaFamily Bench

Dezeen feature on Family Bench — DezeenFamily Bench

Designboom feature on Stilleven — DesignboomStilleven

Design Milk feature on Stilleven — Design MilkStilleven

ArchDaily México feature on Stilleven — ArchDaily MéxicoStilleven

The Bund Pictorial, Shanghai feature on Stilleven — The Bund Pictorial, ShanghaiStilleven

The Cool Hunter feature on XXY — The Cool HunterXXY

Glocal Design MagazineProfile

Print feature feature on Family Bench — Print featureFamily Bench

Thisispaper feature on XXY — ThisispaperXXY

Exhibition view feature on Mexico City — Exhibition viewMexico City

Now I design innovation strategies.

See what I do today

“Beauty is a key to the mystery and a call to transcendence.”

Saint John Paul II / Letter to Artists, 1999