We’re in the heart of Spain’s capital, and somewhere between a calamari sandwich and an art gallery, we stumble upon the Relajaelcoco design studio. We step inside and sit down for a chat with the team behind this graphic design hub.
Relajaelcoco is a design studio with a unique, personal approach to creativity. Let me invite you to discover a bit more about this nest of inspiration.
Interview with Relajaelcoco: The Relaja Spirit
Code: I’ve had the chance to see your work before this conversation, but for those who aren’t familiar with you, could you tell us a bit about the studio’s background? When did it start, how did it all begin, and who is Relajaelcoco?
Relajaelcoco: We started 11 years ago, while we were studying graphic design at IED. Pablo and I trained to be all-round designers, always driven by a curiosity that led us to experiment in different fields: infographics, editorial design, branding, illustration, VR/AR, motion graphics, and digital products.
It began with just the two of us, and now we’re a team of six: four designers, a manager, and a developer. Over the years, many talented people have come through the studio—each one bringing great energy and a passion for creativity and good living.
Code: Great, now let’s talk a bit about your work. Can you walk me through the creative process at a studio like yours? How do you approach a new project?
Relajaelcoco: It really depends on the project—designing a magazine isn’t the same as creating the design and user experience for an interactive website. And don’t get me started on the complexity of a virtual reality project! But there’s always a common foundation: staying open to creativity, avoiding stress, and keeping pressure at bay. From there, the most important thing is dialogue with the client—to fully understand what we’ll be working on together, and what the constraints or possibilities are. Building a strong relationship with the client and their team creates a dynamic that allows the creative process to flow without limits or misunderstandings.
Code: I often talk to lone-wolf designers and creatives, so I’d like to take this chance to ask about teamwork in a design studio. What are the pros and cons?
Relajaelcoco: Honestly, we only see advantages. The only real challenge has been learning how to manage a team and the workflow each of us needs. But overall, working together is a huge plus. Every member is part of a smooth-running machine, and each role is essential to making it all work. The most important job for Pablo and me in recent years has been making sure everyone feels comfortable and valued.
Code: I see you’ve recently won an award for a project you did in collaboration with other creatives—congratulations! Can you tell me about the project and what it was like to receive that recognition?
Relajaelcoco: Yes, the IED Madrid awarded us Best Editorial Design for a publication we created with Santillana to mark the 40th anniversary of the Spanish Constitution, with illustrations by Mol Studio and texts by Carlos Grassa Toro. It was a major project and a tough one, because we had very little time and coordinating eight hands is no small feat—especially the first time. We’d worked with Mol before, which helped a lot. In just two months, we managed to design and illustrate the entire book. It was a tricky publication, covering many political and social topics that could spark controversy—even though it’s a book for 10-year-olds.
Our approach was to go for visual impact, highlight illustration with dynamic lettering and compositions, and create a dual reading level—one for kids and another for parents. That way, adults could find references from their own childhood or teenage years woven into the historical narrative.
The response has been amazing from both kids and adults.
Code: Before I hit you with the final round of questions, just out of curiosity—what exactly is the “relaja spirit”? ;D
Relajaelcoco: It’s a way of life that Pablo and I bring to our everyday. It’s an exciting, playful outlook that strips away the stiffness and seriousness from so many things. It’s about keeping things light, using humor to make our environment as relaxed as possible, even when there’s pressure all around. It’s about doing what you want without regrets, and not letting others hold you back.
Code: And now, for our quick-fire round:
Code: What’s the best thing about being creative?
Relajaelcoco: Having a mental freedom that goes beyond everything. Truly being creative means having no prejudices and being open to everything.
Code: And the worst?
Relajaelcoco: Sometimes you feel misunderstood. No matter how good your intentions, there are people who just don’t get you. It’s not just us—Easy Rider explains it perfectly.
Code: Would you recommend it to a friend?
Relajaelcoco: It’s the best thing that can happen to you.
Code: How do you see the state of the industry?
Relajaelcoco: It’s growing, organically, after the crash of 2008. The level is very high, it’s diverse, and the visual quality is consistently strong. But it needs more structure—right now, that diversity is more of a challenge than an advantage for the profession. We’re still confused about what design really means, and we’re not always clear on the designer’s role or what conditions we should accept. That’s why, together with other designers, we founded Meet A Designer over a year ago. We think it’s essential to meet and talk, to establish some common ground that helps us promote ourselves to all those organizations that use design or are discovering creativity for the first time.
Code: What are you working on now—any new projects?
Relajaelcoco: We have quite a few. Some we can’t talk about yet, but they all have one thing in common: they’re for fantastic clients who are giving us the chance to “dress up” their projects and make an impact.
We’re working on two rebranding projects for Spanish companies, two annual infographic reports—one of them is the fifth edition for Ayuda en Acción. There’s a national campaign for a car brand, a mini-campaign for the Thyssen Museum in Madrid, plus notes from the courses we teach in Madrid and Segovia, and the planning of new personal projects.
Code: To wrap up, I want to thank you for welcoming us and for keeping the creative flame alive in Madrid. Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Relajaelcoco: Yes! It’s important to believe in yourself and in what you’re passionate about. It might sound like a self-help book, but if you don’t, you miss your one shot at happiness. It’s a tough process and requires self-criticism, but it’s not impossible—and if you can get past all the “no’s” you’ll hear, you’ll find some truly amazing rewards.
