Get a glimpse into the life of Rafael Prieto – the new face of the BIRKENSTOCK 1774 COLLECTION IV, celebrating the city that never sleeps and some of it’s most inspiring creatives.
Rafael Prieto (b. 1981, Mexico) is a visionary artist, as well as the founder and Creative Director of Savvy Studio, a New York and México City-based creative studio, a long with Casa Bosques, an experimental, cult chocolate company, as well as Casa Bosques Books, an art-forward purveyor of literature in Mexico. Through these domains, he applies his unique perspective to create artistic, innovative, and personal concepts. Since the establishment of Savvy in 2012, Prieto has made a name for himself and a presence in NYC.
Interview set up by SVPR.
Hi Rafael! It’s a pleasure to sit down with you! First question that I always ask. How does a regular day look like for you in New York?
Always a bit different, some are gray, some are sunny, some are cold. But I usually do 3 things. In the morning I go to the market on Union Square, I exercise, and other days I’ll get a coffee at Frenchette Bakery, around my studio. Twice a week I cook for my team (those are the market days), and other days I cook something simple for myself: beans, leeks, smoked trout, vegetables and sourdough are always on the menu.
All diverse, a mic of presentation, consulting books and the internet for research, lots of chat and dialogue with the team about the projects we are working on, references, digestion, creation, materialization.
A good balance between online and offline process, keeps us interactive. As the day finishes, I sometimes work on the chocolate side of my life, either for a special edition, a new flavor or to experiment. A little walk after, and dinner in, or dinner out, is to be figured.
I’m curious, growing up, what kind of kid were you, what did you enjoy doing and how did you spend your time?
I was mentally very active, a full-on day dreamer. I loved riding horses, climbing when on the ranch at the hill, creating little villages with soil. I would become bored sometimes, and always try to escape home, always looking for a place, a cave or an abandoned house to occupy.
What’s the earliest memory you have of you creating something?
Hard question…
When did you start having an interest in design? And I guess creativity in general?
Since I was young, many arts interested me, at the beginning even acting was very cool to me, I never pursued it that much, only for a couple of plays.
But then I guess around 18, I felt the need to create something different, at first, it’s more acknowledging your appreciation for whatever you find beautiful and interesting, my life was divided by life on the ranch, very calm and contemplative, then the city, then traveling. How could I converge these 3 concepts, and till now, I still feel that in me when I work.
Can you tell me a little bit about what your background is, and what you did professionally before starting Savvy Studio?
I grew up in the north of Mexico, Chihuahua. It was a mix of ranch-living on a cattle ranch and in the city, always traveling in the summers since I was very young, to summer camps, school, study…
Then I went to Montreal at 18 to study, and somehow my spectrum opened into a more creative and free practice. I left and moved to San Diego, then to Spain, back to San Francisco, then Mexico, Berlin, I’ve always been curious and moving.
Aside from the classic jobs while I studied, waitering, salesperson in a shop, I professionally only worked on creating the studio as I graduated in Marketing and Branding.
In 2012 you decided to start “Savvy Studio”. What sparked the idea and what made you pursue it? Also, what was your initial plan for the studio?
Savvy was created under another name before, in 2008, then we changed the name for different reasons. My plan was to discover things, learn from people and work on a very personal level, I felt there was something in me and I was excited to share that experience with people who would feel the same.
Good design, and doing something more towards fine arts, practicing techniques, illustration, taking an intellectual approach with typography and in general using culture as the premise for every project.
Thinking back to the beginning. What has been some of the biggest obstacles in building SS? And what has been the most valuable lesson you’ve learned so far?
I couldn’t tell you to be honest, the work is never done, the main obstacle is our mind. I have been so lucky with clients, with the people that have joined the studio, and my business partner, a great friend.
You also co-founded Casa Bosques, in Mexico City. An experimental, cult chocolate company, as well as Casa Bosques Books, an art-forward purveyor of literature in Mexico, and a pensión, above thebookstore. Can you tell me about that, what made you want to venture into those fields? And what has been some of the biggest obstacles in building CB so far?
Those are my favorites, chocolate and books, this is more of a personal project where I can just do and share something that I truly like for the sake of it.
I can’t really think of obstacles, it’s just everything has challenges but nothing major.
With that in mind, what is your future vision for CB?
Now we’ve created another project, it’s a guest house Pension, and we are expanding next door for another eight rooms. Casa Bosques for me is about culture and taste and being able to create an experience where it all happens in one place pleases me a lot.
You are sleeping above all these Artists’ books and the smell of chocolate ( the atelier is right behind the bookstore ) hits you every morning until 4 pm. Then there’s the studio there, I want people to feel very welcomed into a city that has culture and lots of creativity.
You’re the face of the newest Birkenstock 1774 collection. How did that come about? And what is that experience like?
It came because I liked 2 things, BIRKENSTOCK and Max Fargo’s work, I felt happy to be part of it. The experience was cool, quite relaxed, just strolling in Tribeca.
What motivates you?
Life, being, the next day.
How do you deal with creative blocks?
Hard to tell. Walking, stepping back for a bit, making chocolate. The fact that I have these “extra- curricular” practices always help me to channel energy into different activities.
How would you describe a perfect day?
An early day with breakfast at this Danish place in East village. Eggs and smoked trout, afterwards I’ll go into the studio 9:30 am, in hopes of creative and fluent energy with my team, make beautiful things, cook lunch for them, a couple meetings preferably out and somewhere new. In the afternoon I’ll go to the theater or a movie, followed up with a late dinner. Somewhere in this whole day, a session of exercise should find its way in.
What’s next? Any future projects coming up?
Next is another Pension by Casa Bosques .
It’s a mansion with eight large rooms and a Cafe on the ground floor. I’m very excited, working on all the design, but more than anything defining the experience, I want to create our own thing, a very welcoming and inclusive place with a great sense of privacy at the same time. All will be done by the studio plus a couple of collaborations.
Any designers / creatives we should keep a look out for?
Plenty, I like Max Lamb, forma fantasma, Laila Gohar, Ewe Studio, Bryan Thoreen, Min Jae Kim, Simón Bodmer, and many more… some friends, some I admire, great times.
The editor always asks these two questions at the end of an interview :
Alright Rafael, it’s been a long one. Thank you for hanging in there :D. I always ask these two questions at the end of an interview. The first is. What’s your favorite movie(s) and why?
Well truth is I don’t have favorites, but I do love very much these films;
1. All about my mother by Pedro Almodóvar, not so sure just such deep, chaotic, funny, dark but caring story. The aesthetic and all just had an impact in me.
2. I really like The Mood for Love by Wong Kar-wai, such romantic I am.
And other one is so of the moment, but I found it a masterpiece piece:
3. Poor Things by Yorgos Latmos.
The second is. What song(s) are you currently listening to the most right now?
Lately … Drive by The Cars., Always by Erasure, Operator by Jim Croce