How do you add value to an already beautiful piece of real estate? One that impresses with its architectural styling, its quality, amenities and its landscaping. The answer is: you add the finishing touch, creating evocative interiors that simply take any visitor’s breath away and makes them fall hopelessly in love with the property. Design a home style that is so seductive people can already see themselves living there and enjoying the ultimate lifestyle – and this is where the skilled, trained eye of the professional stylist comes into it.

According to Bijan Laufer, founder of The Art at the Marbella Club, “great design is about solving problems and creating spaces that bring you joy.” A perfectionist as much as he is a creative designer, Bijan approaches the art of design in a very personal yet methodical way. “At any point where my team and I enter a project, we use our faculties to take in the building, be it a home or commercial venue, as well as to get exactly what the owner wishes to achieve in terms of style, ambience and functionality.”

But Bijan and the team at The Art also engage their senses, feeling the setting as it were and putting themselves in the place of the owner, until a clear visual concept begins to take shape that forms the basis for the subsequent designs and detailing. “The work we do involves a very creative process, and one that is highly visual both in its inspiration and the finished result. In reality, it requires using all the senses, from touch and smell to all the other elements that create a feeling of well-being, including how an interior space affects our moods and state of mind.”

“The décor we create around us should therefore be a celebration, offering us the freedom to design a living or working space that energises us and in which we feel safe, comfortable and happy.” Working from this point of view rather than only an aesthetic one, Bijan achieves a deeper meaning through his design work, and it is through this that he acquires the ability to create especially evocative ambiences and living spaces. “If the spaces around us affect how we feel and move into the day, why not make our own personal areas as inspiring as they can be?”

Styling For Epic Marbella

Epic Marbella is a select project of exquisite residences within a gated community styled by Fendi, whose brand values are imprinted into the very fabric of this elite living environment. Attention to detail is found everywhere, from the gated entrance and the svelte architectural styling to the superbly finished public spaces and of course the properties themselves. Spacious and built to the most exacting standards, they represent the top end of Marbella living in a tranquil environment on the periphery of the Golden Mile.

This brings all of the amenities and services of Marbella and Puerto Banús within close range, yet once inside the complex you enter a private domain not surprisingly surrounded by sculpted greenery framed by sea and mountain views. Any project that carries the Fendi name will have to be something very special, and Epic Marbella is the epitome of modern style and refinement, complete with such details as a sports and spa/gym centre, lounge, gastro bar and professional workspace with white glove concierge.

Living at Epic Marbella is enjoying the pinnacle of the Marbella way of life, and while the architectural styling, exterior features and list of amenities are impressive enough to take one’s breath away, the owner also sought an interior style that would reflect the values of the project and complement its quality and detail. “It was quite a brief, but I love a challenge and also the process of immersing myself into the fabric of a project,” says Bijan, who took the signature style of Epic Marbella in a fresh new direction.

“These are exquisite homes designed for a cosmopolitan elite who understand quality, harmonious proportions and good taste, so what was needed was Marbella interior styling taken to a new level.” The homes offer a flowing sequence of refined living spaces, ranging from the expansive lifestyle areas on the rooftop to top-of-the-range kitchens and bathrooms crafted from choice materials. “We used an earthy colour palette accentuated with bespoke furnishing, art and accessories with a certain solidity to them.”

Textural and tonal detailing adds further life to the décor, including such elements as opulent wood, marble and smoked glass, all interpreted with contemporary flair. “A good designer doesn’t work in abstract but feels and follows the architecture and layout of the property, while also accommodating practical and functional characteristics. Ultimately, if you can excite the owner or potential buyer you have succeeded in your mission, and once achieved it is the highest accolade any designer can wish for.”

Bijan and his team worked hard to create the right signature style and ambience for Epic Marbella, a project so special that it required the knowing touch of a talented designer with international experience.

“We are proud of the work we’ve done here, and the client was more than pleased, but when we saw and heard about the reaction of the buyers, we realised what we had actually known all along: namely that when the architecture, landscaping and interior styling of a top-end home come together as a seamless fit, a home is transcended into a work of art that is alive with the lifestyle it makes possible for its owners.”

Thus completed, the styling work by The Art added the final finishing touch to what is a modern classic in the making.