JJ Acuña Shapes the Parklinks Experience Center Around Filipino Design

Featuring handcrafted materials and the work of local artisans, the interactive showroom reflects a vision of modern Filipino living.

If there is an art form where people can have a relationship with design, JJ Acuña believes that it’s interior design and architecture. Compared to other art forms where the sense of touch is limited, the architectural designer and creative director sees his field as one that offers tactile opportunities; there are no limits. This is the idea he kept in mind while working on the Parklinks Experience Center.

Marking a milestone for the estate jointly developed by Eton Properties Philippines Inc. and Ayala Land Inc., the unveiling of the Parklinks Experience Center showcases the Parklinks project through JJ’s vision of Filipino creativity, culture, and community. The center highlights the breadth of Philippine design, from handcrafted materials to local artisanship.

As the creative director of Ayala Land Hospitality, Paloma Urquijo Zobel de Ayala says that the guiding principle that matters most to her when choosing a creative partnership is choosing curiosity over ego. “I think another thing is ensuring that our partner is really asking about the ‘why.’ Why are we doing certain projects? And something that was so wonderful and valuable about JJ was that he wanted to go beyond just making a statement, really informing himself about the community that would make up our place and how we should use this space afterward,” she says.

At the exhibit, both JJ and Paloma discussed the vision behind Parklinks: a modern estate where accessibility, exclusivity, and nature coexist. The project is designed as a modern extension of the exclusive residential enclaves that surround it: Corinthian Gardens, Green Meadows, Valle Verde, and White Plains. The three-bedroom model unit at Parklinks South Tower is also styled by Acuna.

With the concept of community in mind, JJ says that he was interested in making use of his travels throughout his creative process. “When we travel in Southeast Asia, when you go to Bangkok, Vietnam, there’s a way of blending modern lifestyles, modern tastes, and perspectives with heritage and history,” he says. “So I thought that if I had this platform, this experience center, to design something, I wanted to bring my friends who are artisans and craftsmen and showcase their amazing work at a luxury level and show everybody that this is a renaissance of design.”

JJ believes that meeting local artisans and craftsmen has helped him realize that, beyond himself, they can make a difference in the field of design. “We can push this country forward even if we’re just designers and developers. And it’s a great source of inspiration. And I think what we wanted when people came in was also for them to get ideas.”