Diego de Romay

Diego de Romay is a designer from Mexico. His personal style was marked by an international background; born in Mexico, he attended a boarding school for boys in England before continuing his education at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. It was during his yearly visits to the Yucatan Peninsula whilst at boarding school and university that Diego began designing sculptural pieces. Britain played a key role in Diego’s artistic development, particularly the celebration of eccentricity for which that culture is known. It was there that he received the influence of eminent designers, friends and family. Upon his return to Mexico he set up his own design studio, putting that wide-ranging, eclectic formation into practice with the added element of the Mayan tradition of the studio’s location.

“I was incredibly fortunate to have been exposed to the broadest spectrum of people and places throughout my life; from a Lacandon artist deep in the Mayan jungle that had only recently come into contact with the modern world, whose craft was inspired entirely from nature’s free forms, without any external design references, to my late grandfather, whose principles and style were associated with stateliness, restraint, and strict adherence to recognised standards of form and craftsmanship, especially from the Renaissance to the 18th century. Polar opposites, yet they both influenced my work equally. I am grateful that my life has been, and continues to be, filled with wonderful contrast, which I believe encourages us beyond our comfort zones into the realms of virtuosity and magic.

In terms of style and design, I am of the view that there is no higher form of luxury than that which is grounded in humility.”

— Diego de Romay

DdR Studio: our responsibility.

Upon his return to Mexico, Diego spent several years working with Mayan master woodworkers, materialising his sculptural designs in line with their ancestral techniques. This led to the foundation of DdR Studio.

The establishment of the studio has seen younger generations of locals opting to pursue their ancestral craft over following the common trend of abandoning the Maya language and traditions for a seemingly more lucrative position in the larger metropolis. DdR aims to uphold their traditions by providing a safe space for creation and in the process demonstrating their ancestral craft’s commercial potential.

Sculptural Furniture: the story behind each piece.

DdR sculptural creations are connected to their original environment and embody a rhetoric of rebirth with their unique conception in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. When Diego discovered that centuries-old mayan hardwood trees fall yearly during the wet and stormy hurricane season, he hired experienced scouts to find these naturally fallen trees that would later become the foundation and primary material of Diego’s designs. Since DdR Studio does not cut live trees for its limited production, it is in complete harmony with the ecosystem that provides the materials in exchange for a new life in a modern, human environment.

A cultural initiative.

We believe that leading figures and innovators no longer seek to escape, but rather look for stimulating experiences that nurture and further their creative development. With that in mind, the studio is working to create a physical space that merges all our passions - art, architecture, furniture, design and scents - in the form of a cultural initiative showcasing our work and other artists’. The aim is to attract an appreciative audience with rotating interior and exterior installations surrounding our high-end suites by the world-famous crystal-clear waters of Bacalar at their doorstep. By staying here, one will not only discover but also live in a space masterfully curated with the work of emerging and established artists, which will rotate yearly. In doing so, the foundation intends to foster an international cultural community that will interact and animate within and beyond the tropical sanctum of our Bacalar location.

More details forthcoming.

Style, Interior Design and Architecture

The studio takes on interior design projects that share our praise for the understated luxury, nature being the ultimate example of the aforementioned. Our interior design work is characterised by the assimilation of a wide variety of inherited elements that narrate a history rich in cultural influences. DdR Studio is best exemplified by its minimalistic nature and the incorporation of nature and local elements such as stone and precious hardwood, all of which highlight the grace of imperfection