Eugenio Fernandez, Partner and Architect
Eugenio Fernandez is Partner and Architect at Studio By Three, a boutique interior design firm based in Al Quoz, Dubai. Trained as an architect and practising as both architect and artist, his career spans Spain and the UAE and moves across three disciplines: architecture, museography and creative direction. That combination gives him a particular fluency in the world of luxury brands — how they think, how they present themselves, and how a physical space can carry a brand's identity without repeating it. At Studio By Three, Eugenio leads work for hospitality, F&B and luxury retail clients across Dubai and Abu Dhabi, from the Momentum watch store in Dubai to restaurant and café projects in the capital.
The interview
How would you describe your design philosophy?
At Studio By Three we do not design for the ego, but for the will of creating something new for each project. That principle sits at the centre of how I work. Every brief is an excuse to experiment with architecture and materials, and to push a boundary that has not been pushed in quite that way before.
Your career has moved between Spain and the UAE. How has that shaped you?
Working in two very different contexts teaches you that there is no single correct way to make a space. Spain gave me a grounding in architecture and in the discipline of museography — the art of designing how objects and stories are displayed. The UAE gave me speed, ambition and a client base that expects originality as a baseline. The two sensibilities inform each other constantly.
You work across architecture, museography and creative direction. Why all three?
Because a space is never only a building. Museography taught me that the way things are arranged, lit and sequenced changes what they mean — whether the object is an artwork, a watch or a plate of food. Creative direction is simply the same thinking applied to a whole environment: the material, the light, the route through the room. For luxury brands especially, the space has to speak with one voice, and that requires holding all three disciplines at once.
What makes a strong concept for a luxury brand environment?
Restraint and conviction. A strong concept for a luxury brand does not shout the brand's codes back at the visitor; it finds the one idea that the brand has not yet expressed physically and builds everything around it.
Do you have a favourite material or detail you return to?
What interests me more than any single material is honesty between materials — letting wood be wood, stone be stone. When the palette is reduced, every joint and every shadow becomes a design decision, and that is where the richness is.
How do you see Dubai’s design scene right now?
It is maturing quickly. The city received 19.59 million international overnight visitors in 2025 according to Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism, and the hospitality pipeline — announced projects such as Baccarat Downtown and Aman Dubai — is raising the standard of what clients expect. The conversation has moved from spectacle to emotional resonance. That suits us. Dubai is becoming a place where original, carefully made interiors are recognised and rewarded.
What advice would you give a brand or owner starting a project?
Come with a clear point of view about who you are, but an open mind about how it becomes a space. The strongest projects begin when a client brings conviction and lets the design process translate it — rather than arriving with a finished image they want copied. And start the conversation early; the best decisions are made before anything is drawn.
Studio By Three works with luxury brands, hotel developers and F&B owners across Dubai and Abu Dhabi from its studio at Warehouse N.7, Al Quoz 3, Dubai. To discuss a project with Eugenio and the team, write toinfo@studiobythree.com or call+971 50 443 6236.