Montagud Editores, a publisher specializing in gastronomy, has opened a showroom in Barcelona dedicated to fostering and disseminating the culture of good eating. The lighting creates a sequence of scenes, structures the space, and accompanies the various rituals that take place within it.
Gastronomy is culture. What we eat not only nourishes us, but also teaches us, telling us about the region where the raw materials come from and how they are prepared. Montagud Editores was founded in 1906 to celebrate this intellectual and communal dimension, to build an editorial archive that would collect the legacy of those who practice the craft. The design of their books – and of Apicius magazine, which they publish every six months – is impeccable: every typeface, every white space, every image is meticulously cared for. Culinary excellence, under their discerning eye, is combined with editorial excellence, and now this ethos extends to the physical space, their new showroom in Barcelona, a place designed for encounters between professionals and gastronomy enthusiasts at presentations, culinary experiences, and unhurried conversations. In short, it’s a space designed to continue nurturing this culture.
The Lago Interioriza studio signed off on the project, which the publishers describe as "a space designed to support conversation, encounter, and experience without imposing its presence; a place for those who know how to look slowly." And this design philosophy extends to the lighting, conceived by the Lighting & Wellbeing Studio team at Vibia as a sequence of scenes that organize the space and accompany the various rituals taking place within it. The Plusminus collection, which Diez Office designed with a textile strap that integrates electrical conductors and allows for different luminaires to be inserted, showcases its full versatility in this project. It is complemented by the table lamps Musa, Africa and Mayfair, and by the pendant lamp Tempo.
Upon entering, books greet us on the shelves, taking center stage in the space. Alongside them, a long table invites browsing through their pages. Here, Plusminus defines the focal points. A linear diffuser, integrated into the same textile strap, illuminates the table surface, while a series of spotlights direct the gaze towards the bookshelves. Placed on the table, Musa introduces a more intimate and controlled scale with the design by Note Design Studio, which softens the light as it passes through the hand-blown opal glass shade. On a side table, Africa, designed by Francisco Gomez Paz, unfolds its sculpted, focused, and adjustable light.
We continue further inside and find ourselves in another corner, separated by a metallic curtain, featuring a bar designed for presentations and backed by a wall of shelves that, instead of books, display culinary awards the publisher has received since its founding. The story continues to unfold, and Plusminus reappears, though this time with hemispherical luminaires in a beige finish hanging from the strap. Here too, Africa, graceful and portable, concentrates the light, and will do so again in the kitchen.
In the room dedicated to recording the podcast – titled 'Se me antoja' (I feel like it) – the light becomes softer, inviting relaxed conversation, reflection, and shared intimacy. An effect that Plusminus achieves, once again, with the beige hemispherical luminaires.
We now arrive at the events room, with round tables designed for enjoying gastronomy and sharing impressions with other diners. Here, the lighting enhances this communal aspect, inviting guests to pay attention to each other and to the food. Plusminus in its cone version directs light towards the center, supported by the table version of Mayfair Mini wherever an additional point of light is needed. The latter, a contemporary and lightweight reinterpretation of the classic lamp designed by Diego Fortunato, reappears in the kitchen consulting area, accompanying gastronomic learning with its focused light on the tables for two diners and on the bar. Here, it also complements the more general and enveloping light of Plusminus in its spherical version with a beige textile strap. A tandem that effectively covers different lighting needs within the same space.
The kitchen, located in a corner, introduces a chromatic yellow accent into the space and presents itself, as it should, as the heart of the place. Here, Plusminus once again adopts the linear diffuser version to reduce itself to its minimal expression, its most technical aspect, and allow what happens between the stoves to take center stage.
In the bathroom, the subtle line of Tempo, designed by Lievore Altherr, integrates into the space and completes the tour. Its progressively opaque oval opaline glass structure diffuses and softens the light. The collection's Terra Red finish complements the candles, contributing to a sense of intimacy.
This showroom proves that a dish reaches its perfect point when shared, discussed, and savored with discernment. The lighting, a mosaic of complementary collections that distribute the space while achieving visual continuity, helps create the right atmosphere for cultural exchange to happen.
It goes beyond decoration to become part of the architecture, to dialogue with it, with people, and with the dishes. To accompany the table, highlight the book as an object, and celebrate gastronomy that doesn't end in the kitchen.