The LuxuryLab Award 2024 will be awarded to the renowned Mexican architect Fernanda Canales, in recognition of her outstanding work in the implementation of civic spaces in northern Mexico. Canales has demonstrated an innovative vision and unwavering commitment to sustainable urban development, creating spaces that not only beautify cities but also promote social integration and community well-being. Her work has transformed previously neglected areas into vibrant and accessible centers, providing citizens with places to gather, interact, and participate in public life.
Fernanda Canales’ work in northern Mexico is characterized by her focus on participatory architecture, involving local communities in the design and construction of these civic spaces. Her ability to listen to and understand people’s needs has resulted in projects that reflect local identity and culture while promoting environmental sustainability. This award not only celebrates her talent and dedication but also highlights the importance of creating inclusive and resilient urban spaces, which are essential for the social and economic development of the region.
Doctora Cum Laude en Arquitectura por la Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid (ETSAM), con Maestría de la Universidad Politécnica de Barcelona (UPC), y Arquitecta por la Universidad Iberoamericana de la Ciudad de México (UIA). Ha recibido reconocimientos como el premio Emerging Voices del Architectural League of New York y fue elegida por la revista Domus como una de las cien mejores firmas de arquitectura en el mundo. Su trabajo ha sido expuesto en el Royal Academy of the Arts en Londres, en ifa Gallery en Stuttgart y en la Bienal de Venecia.
“Luxury is such a subjective subject. Everything fits into it, from beluga caviar, to the please of not having to do a thing or, in some cases, having clean water 24 hours a day.” However, visually, luxury is understood as something that represents design and refinement at its peak. This trophy seeks to express a sense of proud opulence in its intimate combination of metals. The sobriety of silver combined with flashes of gold, projected at the slightest movement. «I am very proud to have been invited for the second time, to design such a prestigious award that celebrates a career in the service of what is well done, excellence and unusual qualities that represent luxury for me.»
If the first time I designed this tribute was at the hands of Mexican silversmiths, this time I gave free rein to the imagination from the magnificent workshops of St James in Brazil, under the watchful eye of the team of artisans and goldsmiths who worked to give life to some restless lines that I drew on paper. The sculpture reflects an intimate relationship with a certain lavishness, an essence of luxury. Their touching, unified, parallel lines in direction coincide with a phrase coined by Leonardo da Vinci: «Simplicity is the utmost sophistication». This trophy celebrates luxury as a lifestyle, as a tradition with vision or a unique and unrepeatable experience.”
Founded in the 1950s in Tlaquepaque as a small studio workshop, Cerámica Suro is among Guadalajara’s most important institutions as a world-renowned ceramics factory where the most ambitious projects in the world of art, architecture, design and gastronomy are developed and produced.
During the last two decades, Cerámica Suro has carried out projects that have put Guadalajara in the crosshairs of the international art world.
Suro has turned what was once a family workshop that manufactured dinnerware and decorative objects into it’s second generation as an incubator for global artists, designers and creatives, developing their most ambitious projects.
It is currently one of the factories in México with the greatest interaction in the international art circuit.
Since then and until now, around 500 artists have collaborated with Cerámica Suro.
What characterizes the work they do in the factory, is that there is always room for new clients, with great generosity.