Blank Pilates by EVBR Studio
Blank Pilates by EVBR Studio is a calm yet quietly charged interior that challenges our assumptions of physical comfort.
Situated within a 99-square-metre studio, the project brings pilates philosophy into spatial form, embodying the tension between discomfort and alignment, ease and control. The interior moves beyond typical notions of wellness environments, ones that often privilege neutrality and softness, and instead creates a setting that intentionally integrates both balance and disruption to guide the body and mind into a state of focused calm.
The client's request for an open-plan layout combined with the studio's window-lined perimeter presented both a design opportunity and a spatial risk. Without thoughtful intervention, the volume might have appeared static or overly empty. In response, EVBR introduced a diagonal mirror wall that slices through the centre of the room, generating a subtle yet persistent tension. This gesture breaks from the orthogonal expectations of a typical studio and instead invites visitors to engage physically and spatially with the interior. The angled wall supports spatial definition and becomes a sculptural force, reflecting bodies in motion, framing light, and challenging users to question their alignment within the room.
Throughout the pilates hall, angular interventions recur with intention. Storage units for exercise props are crafted on an incline, allowing for ergonomic access while quietly referencing the asymmetry of pilates positions. These forms sit within a warm and soft palette, rounded columns, a creamy beige backdrop, and filtered natural light that is diffused through hanji screens. Installed in front of the perimeter windows, the translucent Korean paper filters daylight while maintaining a level of visual privacy, softening the interior and heightening its contemplative quality.
Texture plays an essential role in defining the studio's atmosphere. EVBR employed fine marmorino plaster across the walls, offering a subtle surface variation that absorbs light with restraint. The ceiling, by contrast, is finished with a rough perlite spray, creating a tactile counterpoint that deepens the room's physical presence. Raw timber elements, most notably in a series of reclaimed columns, introduce another layer of grounded materiality, reinforcing the connection between the body, the floor, and the room itself.
Responding to the client's desire to include Korean cultural elements, EVBR approached these details with deliberate restraint. A small tea stage is positioned near the entrance, anchoring the pre-session ritual of tea drinking in a setting that is quiet and elemental. Reclaimed wood and carved stone elements lend weight and balance to the area, while an oil burner stand, reimagined from a traditional Korean candlestick, offers a sculptural nod to heritage. The design chooses to embed cultural cues in small, meaningful gestures, each integrated into the overall spatial language.
The decision to incorporate these gestures reflects a quiet confidence. The studio was aware that layering traditional Korean references into a space rooted in a Western exercise philosophy might create dissonance. This led to a process of thoughtful editing, where cultural details were reinterpreted in contemporary and accessible forms. The result is a palette that is regionally informed yet globally attuned.
Blank Pilates ultimately becomes a studio of spatial contradiction, where softness meets sharpness, where light is filtered yet directional, and where the body is asked to remain aware of its posture and position. These contradictions reflect the very principles of pilates, where controlled movement and mindful discomfort are pathways to strength and long-term comfort.
This project is emblematic of EVBR Studio's broader approach to interiors. Short for "Even Better," the studio's name reflects its commitment to continual refinement. Grounded in the belief that inspiration flows from spatial experience and cycles back through the lives of those who inhabit it, EVBR designs with the ambition to empower, provoke, and sustain. The studio resists superficial gestures, instead rooting its projects in purposeful contrasts and understated narrative cues. Whether interpreting cultural motifs or crafting spaces that gently challenge physical habits, EVBR works at the intersection of restraint and emotion, designing environments that are used and also felt.
Blank Pilates encapsulates this ethos. Through its calibrated intersections of material, movement, and light, it offers a spatial framework for awareness, where comfort is something to be worked toward, and meaning is found in the smallest angles.
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