Raised in Marbella, Jorge Rincón graduates as architect from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, returning to the Costa del Sol at the end of 2002 to join the prestigious architecture practice MS Design where, during his studies, he did some summer stages and where he begins his career as an architect adopting the compromise with quality in design and execution that distinguishes this practice.

At the end of 2003, he established his own practice teaming up with technical architect Vicente Ruiz Fernández, with the target of specializing in high-end residential projects, dedicating all the necessary time and efforts to develop and care each home, both in the design phase as well as the building phase, with the vocation of architecture craftsmen.

He crossed paths with prominent Norwegian Project manager, Svein Finstad, and together they developed several relevant villa projects in Marbella, Norway and Domenican Republic. From Svein he adopts the high levels of demands in quality and finishes and the tight control of the project from all perspectives and scales, from the most general to the smallest details, from the more pragmatic decisions to the importance of the design and, always, with the clear target of our ultimate objective of our craft, create a real home to the measure of the family who will inhabit it.

“At JRW Arquitectura we don’t work for our own ego but for our client, we have a vision of architecture that seeks for integration in the environment, the use of natural materials, noble, with texture, authentic, with references to the local south Mediterranean architecture from a contemporary perspective, proportioned and human scale spaces (the bigger, the higher,…, is not necessarily the better for a home), looking for warm, elegant, natural and calm ambience, in which landscaping plays a role of great importance, extending the interior spaces to the outdoors in a fluid and natural way.”

JRW Arquitectura is a practice with a multidisciplinary team and a trusted net of collaborators with whom they work shoulder to shoulder to develop high-end singular residential projects of different scales, new buildings, and complete renovations, but always committed to the best quality architecture in design and execution, and seeking for it to be timeless, serene, warm, noble, charmful and adapted to the client’s needs.

“We are dedicated to the creation of soulful homes with the spirit of a shokunin”

+ How can you reflect the spirit of a shokunin in a project?

In the studio, we are moved by the creation of homes. We observe the trend of recent years of detached, cold homes, the use of artificial materials, excessive heights, making use of certain details which are more typical for commercial premises. However, our vision is to use natural materials with real textures, warm, and appropriate proportions for a familiar and cozy environment and usage. Regardless of the size of the project, we conceive the architecture, interior design, and landscaping, as a unit which envelops our customers in a calm, elegant, natural, warm, cozy, timeless, and charming environment with soul.

During a recent trip to Japan, I have learned a little more about its culture and traditional values. I was fascinated by the aesthetics of its architecture and applied arts, and especially impressed by the underlying concepts such as the value of the imperfect, the craftsmanship, the trace of the passage of time of the wabi-sabi philosophy, or the commitment to his craft, tradition and the constant search for excellence in his art of a master craftsman shokunin, spirit with which we fully identify in our daily work.

+ You are specialists in the creation of luxury contemporary design houses in Marbella and Norway. How are these types of projects nowadays? How have they evolved?

My partner Vicente Ruiz and I always agree that the fundamental influences in our architecture are due to two essential factors:

First, inspired by my time at the prestigious architecture studio of Marcos and Maurice Sainz in Marbella, where they transmitted their commitment to the design and the final result of the work, the importance of constantly controlling all the scales of the project.

Second, having worked with the exceptional Norwegian project manager Svein Finstad, an unusual combination of relentless engineer and meticulous designer, very fond of detail and traditional aesthetics.

Adding to these influences our tastes and the experience of almost 20 years of practice, we strongly defend an architecture that is inspired by tradition in its compositional schemes, proportions, materials, but reinterpreted from a completely current, contemporary point of view.

We are an eclectic studio, we do not seek to identify ourselves with a particular image and use it indiscriminately in any location and environment, and we avoid passing fashions. Our vision of architecture is common to all projects, but they are adapted to their environment, geographical location, and client tastes. In our portfolio, you can see very different projects on the Costa del Sol, in Norway, in the Dominican Republic. We are always looking for timeless values in composition and style, with one eye looking to history and architectural tradition and the other to the avant-garde and technology of the 21st century.

+ What is the difference between creating a luxury home in Marbella and doing it in Norway?

It was Svein Finstad who, after a successful project of two homes in Marbella, allowed us to work with him on a first project (there would be two in the end) of housing in the southeast of Norway, near the border with Sweden. It was exciting on a personal and professional level, being involved in all phases of the project and work, including regular visits to control the execution. In addition, it was very enriching to learn about the construction systems used, sometimes very different from the ones in southern Spain, and how the climate directly influences technical and design decisions.

To achieve the standards of the homes we built in Marbella, numerous companies from the Costa del Sol were involved in supplying and installing marble, woodwork, plaster, kitchens, and even decoration.

+ What projects are you currently working on?

We have projects in different phases and of very different scales. Our specialty is large villas. They are complex projects in which many agents are involved who must be coordinated and unified but also, they enrich the end result.

But the one most absorbing project lately is our new studio, which we have tried to conceive as a showroom of our current commitment to architecture and design. We have tested solutions and materials which we are confident in offering them to our clients.

+ Could you tell us about a project in which you have worked with TINO Natural Stone?

There are many. Our relationship with TINO came from our beginnings when we were looking for natural stones with unique textures. TINO always stood out for its a vast selection of natural stones which we could apply to our projects.

I would highlight the Domus finishes of the floors of some villas in La Cerquilla a few years ago, the large format coverings in Pietra Grey for fireplace fronts, the Premium Beige floors of a recently completed villa in Nueva Andalucía, and especially Tino’s contribution to our studio-showroom with a spectacular Black Mirage table and other decorative elements in Atenea White, Pietra Grey, and Ebano Black.

+ Why do you use natural stone in your work?

It is always our first choice, materials and textures are essential in searching for a warm and natural atmosphere, and stone and wood are essential to achieve it.

The new synthetic materials that imitate it, will never achieve the stone grain depth. The tonelessness and imperfections transmit nature, reality, and authenticity. It has the continuity and flatness that only a natural stone polished in-situ can offer. The possibility to customize the edges, thicknesses and its three-dimensionality make natural stone very versatile.

+ Have you found any advantage in using Stonesize ultralight natural stone? Could you provide some details?

Hats off to TINO’s Stonesize. The natural stone’s weak point was its high weight and difficult workability in large formats. The large porcelain tiles were the only interesting option. Stonesize’s technology solved the natural stone weight problem, allowing us to use it in entirely unexpected ways for “traditional” natural stone and venture into more daring designs with stone.

We are prescribing it for a chimney body hanging from the ceiling, whose execution would require a complex substructure and structural reinforcements if we did not have this lightweight product, keeping the visual aspect of the stone intact.

Stonesize was used in several decorative furniture solutions and pedestal sinks in our new studio showroom, simulating large stone blocks that we can move with one hand.

+ Finally, why do you trust TINO Natural Stone?

So far, I have mentioned the positive aspects of the use of stone in our projects. Still, one of the problems you may encounter with this product is that you choose a sample, and when you receive it on-site, it does not meet your expectations, and you do not have time to place a new order due to the execution time. However, it is a natural material, and from the quarry, you get whatever nature decides.

That is why you need the guarantee of a reliable company as Tino, who invests in a careful selection of the material you are going to receive, which was previously spread, classified by tone, the pieces that do not pass quality control discarded, and numbered piece by piece so that the material is perceived homogeneous and displays all its beauty in work.

Finally, I would highlight Tino’s constant research and development, looking for new textures, new finishes, technologically improved stones, facilitating our work to use material as extraordinary as natural stone in our projects.

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