You want it around, but it’s hard to know why. Beauty is one of the most studied and discussed concepts of all time, ever since human began to think, reflect and discuss the most transcendental topics. It has been addressed in philosophy, the sciences, the mystical, and in so many moments of erotic digression throughout history. As abstract as it is ethereal, yet constantly enveloping us in the everyday routine of our lives. Since the Greek philosophers like Plato and Aristotle, the subject of beauty has raised a thousand questions, almost always in a dual form: does beauty lie in the object, in the physical, or is it purely immaterial, the effect on the subject who experiences it? Is there such a thing as beauty per se or does everyone have their own, no matter where they come from? This is how we imagine debates would begin in ancient Greece, obviously among columns designed in celestial proportions within perfectly symmetrical agoras.

We’re not about philosophy or history, so we’re not here to meta-analyse beauty. We don’t know if there is a universal aesthetic, nor if it is always determined by the canons set by culture and temporal evolution. However, there are a couple of things we would like to say about our vision, without being too pretentious, because they certainly mark the KALEOS philosophy and permeate our entire creative and design process. 

Thinking about the golden ratio moves us, the fact that there is a pattern that organises matter, that has always been in the physical world, and that at some point, we don’t know exactly when or how, human beings discovered it and began to use it in their creations, trying to imitate the perfection of nature.

It’s impressive to be able to see this pattern in the veins of leaves, in flowers – have you ever observed the disc of a sunflower? –, in the shape of shells, or in the wings of insects, and to think that it exists even within ourselves. Is this the secret of the universe?

Phi, golden number, divine proportion. Throughout history, this master formula has been discovered and rediscovered and continues to be theorised about. For the design and construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza, it seems that the ancient Egyptians already applied reason with incredible accuracy, while centuries later, Phidias, a Greek sculptor and mathematician, was the first person to study and document phi, and applied it to the design and sculptures of the Parthenon. No wonder, then, that in the face of such wonder, years later, Plato considered the Golden Ratio to be the mathematical relationship most closely linked to the physics of the cosmos, and even the key to understanding it.

Since the relationship was present in nature, it was concluded that it was a manifestation of nature, and it was thought that anything designed according to this canon would have intrinsic beauty.

We don’t know if this is so, but the golden ratio clearly influences us in our constant search for harmony through mathematical precision, while at the same time it drives us to follow our most spontaneous intuition and inspiration—how else did the early theorists discover it?—. For us, beauty is undoubtedly in simplicity.

Although, as its founder Walter Gropius once said: “Bauhaus is not a style, but an attitude.”

After the First World War, Germany was an affected country that had no room for unnecessary decoration. In this context, Bauhaus students and teachers advocated a style based on the practicality of buildings and objects over their aesthetics. They promoted the use of simple geometric shapes such as the circle, square and triangle, and of quality, durable materials. Each element of the piece had its raison d’être: 

However, we find it genuinely paradoxical that precisely under this principle of practicality, his works, far from pretentious, turned out to be so beautiful and special, precisely because of their simplicity, excellence in design and painstaking craftsmanship (triple inspiration for us). Thus, the Bauhaus movement revolutionised the aesthetic criteria of all branches of art in the 20th century, and remains an icon in design, architecture and art.

But we admit to being somewhat more hedonistic or epicurean about the practicality of any creation. We believe in the visual pleasure that good design produces, and in that pleasure as a service in itself, a service to the spirit or soul.

We believe in a selfless beauty. Although, of course, time and context determine everything. We have learned about beauty and art from different historical references, but we design from the here and now: from an explosive and changing present that inspires us every day and holds all our attention. And precisely at present, in the age of hyper-productivity and categorical profit, to move away from pure practicality seems to us to be most subversive. Creating as a means of expression, creating to stimulate the senses and the mind, beyond the practicality of the object, that is art in a way. 

In short, we are sensitive to beauty, and now we also know how to provoke it. With a special focus on shape, with designs fine-tuned to the millimetre, with the passion and savoir faire of craftsmanship. Welcome to KALEOS.



Juan and Claudia