WHAT WE DO

Our team, with excellent skills and in-depth knowledge, combining immense passion for design with practical experience, provides total solutions and full services from concept, planning, design, and construction supervision.

Atelier Aurora is a Cebu-based Architecture and Multi-Disciplinary Design Studio providing various types of design solutions for spaces and structures including houses, workplaces, retail shops, food & beverage outlets, hospitality and multi-purpose facilities. Registered in 2013 but fully established in 2015, Atelier Aurora, also known as AdeA, is deeply inspired by the diverse art and artisanal ateliers of the renaissance era. It is geared towards the hands-on immersion and masterful pursuit of experimental design. Taking its roots from the Eames’ office of the mid-century era, it hopes to celebrate and cultivate and hopefully integrate a culture of creativity for all forms of design- from architecture, interior design, furniture design, fashion design, graphic design, branding and many more.

Our team, with excellent skills and in-depth knowledge, combining immense passion for design with practical experience, provides total solutions and full services from concept, planning, design, and construction supervision.

We believe that the service of design is a process that should be enjoyed from start to finish. We pride ourselves in being client- centric; in being service-oriented, rather than egoistic. Since 2013, Atelier Aurora has created beautiful furniture, structure and spaces for homes and establishments in Cebu, Manila, Cagayan de Oro, Boracay, Bacolod, Tacloban, Palawan, Siargao, Japan & Italy.

Design goes beyond the realms of aesthetic value. We give equal importance to function and meaning, as we do with form. We find beauty in details, authenticity of material, and the little things that improve how a user interacts with a space

Our atelier continually seeks ways to invent original and valuable designs, striving to push the envelope for new ways to manipulate materials and finishes, just like the renaissance ateliers that we respect and admire.

Our practice is centered at the very heart of service and our aim is user- satisfaction. We learn from the users and how they do things, and we make it about them. We hope to combine both their individuality and our expertise to maximize creativity.

At AdeA, We aim for constant innovation.

WHAT WE THINK

We give equal importance to function and meaning, as we do with form.

Meet The Team

  • Ar. Dawn Sy, UAP

    Founder, Managing Director, Principal Architect

    “A Sleepy girl with a busy life”, is what Dawn likes to describe herself as. But to others, she is an architect, entrepreneur, fashion stylist, and a fashion and lifestyle content creator. She builds her practice on good design as a key tool in uplifting lives and elevating experiences.

    Dawn’s graduating thesis about harnessing of sustainable energy and practical green practices through a negative-wattage home landed her in the top 10 of her class in 2011. She then spent her 2-year internship as a junior designer at the Strategic Land Management Group & Innovation & Design Group for Ayala Land Inc, and as a junior designer at Espina, Perez-Espina & Associates before she became an architect in 2013.

    Before shifting Atelier de Aurora’s focus to spaces and structures, Dawn, along with a team of freelance architects, designed and developed furniture and décor for Japanese- Based Furniture Company, Asplund LTD in 2013, allowing her to be immersed in details, material manipulation, and Japanese- standard craftsmanship. She also started her own local clothing line, Blind Clothing, putting her on Sunstar Cebu’s “35 Faces of Influence: Movers, Mavericks and Makers” in 2015.

    To date,

    Dawn’s other pursuits include multi-disciplinary design, women-empowerment, and pineapple not being on any form of pizza.

  • Ar. Buddy Ong, UAP

    Senior Partner, Senior Architect, Collaborator

    Emil Antonio Ong, “Ar. Buddy” as he is fondly called, interned for Espina, Perez-Espina & Associates before he became a licensed Architect in 2013. Since then until the present, he immersed himself in Furniture & Product design and has done projects in Japan collaborating with Japanese design companies as well as manufacturers in the Philippines and Indonesia. Ar. Buddy believes that the process of design is a process of smaller projects with each project creating micro-narratives all revolving around a bigger context. He aims to always create conversations between creativity and context. This deep curiosity in the small things made him pursue on focusing on the different facets surrounding the Architecture practice. In between, he brews and manages Mr. Garfield’s Gingerale, makes doughnuts with MILK Coffee and Doughnuts, feeds his love for product design, graphic design and branding with MA studio (product and innovations arm of ADEA), listen to obscure music genres and enjoys a good game of basketball every now and then.

    Univeristy of San Carlos-Technological Center – units in Master in Architecture major in Heritage Conservation

    Univeristy of San Carlos-Technological Center – units in Master in Architecture major in Interior Architecture

    Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) –Certified instructor for Design Thinking and Prototype testing

    ETH Zurich – Certificate in Future Cities and Design meaning

  • Ar. Kaloy Mapeso-Uypuanco, UAP

    Senior Partner,
    Senior Architect, Collaborator

    Antonio Carlos M. Uypuanco or better known as “Kaloy”. He started his Architecture path in USC then transferred to USPF in the hopes of a more relaxed schedule because he wanted to pursue his Production Design dreams. While studying Architecture in USPF, he was also working full time in Bigfoot Studios in Mactan where he started off as an Art Director for a full length movie and later on climbed the ladder and became a Production Designer. He designs and builds sets for movies, music videos, fashion shows - name it, he must have done it all. He’s also a certified Underwater Production Designer and is credited as the UWPD for Marine Boy 2009 and is part of the team who designed some of the underwater world at Ocean Park and Water World Set at the Universal Studios both in Singapore.

    He took his Production Design experience to the Architecture field and finally took and passed the board exams on January 2017. He practices minimalism and uses basic geometrical lines and shapes in his design solutions. He says that his solutions are practical. His design philosophy is just to be practical - “Designing is understanding user perception and experience.” - nothing more and nothing less than that.

    Certificate on Underwater Production Design
    Pinewoods Studio LTD 2008

    Certificate on Brand Management
    NYU School of Professional Studies 2010

  • Ar. Dynah Labutap, UAP

    Associate Architect & Admin Head


    Architecture varies for every person since we are individually different in our own ways, but in the end, architecture is meant for everyone; making each project uniquely planned for a specific man’s passion and personality. Because all along architecture is making dreams come true: a client building his dream house; and an Architect designing from a piece of paper to a reality that affects the quality of life of the people. “The great thing about being an Architect is you can walk into your dreams” - Winston Churchill.

  • IDr. Dione Larrazabal, PIID

    Associate Interior Designer, Head of Interior Design Division

    People would often ask me, “What is your deigns style as an Interior Designer?” My answer would always be the same, I draw my inspiration from the client or company’s identity and vision. It leads to a sense of visual synergy and consistency to the overall design composition. A good design is a space that breeds positive experience, through good quality materials, overall balance, and essentially, a design that fills its purpose.

  • Mikhaela Salvado

    Designer


    Playful and curious about the world, I’m a creative explorer who designs to communicate and to help improve the user’s experience. My visions in this industry includes storytelling, calling for action and educating people about the importance of design in our everyday lives and how we can solve even the most complex problems through it. Passionate about the environment, exploration, good coffee and the Marvel Multiverse.

  • Alexa Marie Arriesgado

    Studio Head

    I live for music and art. Designing on the other hand is also part of my living process, it’s about finding the perfect harmony between every element in a space. Treating a space as a blank canvass, I paint my way to creating possibilities, from it I have fully observed the big role of colors in designing. I have always loved neutrals but as the trend changes every now and then, the vital part of choosing the right palette has always become part of my design process. Creating a different kind of feels, a different kind of touch and a different experience for the users.

  • Rae Moses Lepatan

    Studio Head

    Random, Mechanical, and Technical. I grew up with fascination in inventions. From light bulbs to vehicular transmission, this made me realize the importance of design. Designing with a purpose, an approach in which I cam to realize from all the books, youtube videos etc. I encountered. The random part? Well because I love iced tea.

  • Claudeen Pangilinan

    Designer

    Growing up in a family where to express and to listen is essential. That is how we communicate. I firmly believe that architecture is also a language. They are not just simply structures but they also communicate if we only look deeper. With that, it makes me reflect it to the way I design. I am into listening to the hearts of every person that I encounter and let them express what they need and dream of in a particular space. It has always been a privilege to be given the opportunity to make a vision come to life. Architecture is not mainly about the aesthetics and experience is what makes architecture special.

  • Dianne Apoyon

    Designer

    My undergrad thesis was a study on an approach called “Experential Interior Design”, which focuses solely on people-place relationships. This approach has given me a new perspective in designing interior spaces and furniture pieces, and has become one of my top priorities in doing so. I believe that as designers, we have the ability to influence the end-user’s experience through the interiors by creating a positive bond between the person and the physical space.

  • James Carcallas

    Designer

    I come from a simple family with simple needs in life. Everything is calm. But when I studied Architecture, I’ve learned that in designing there are no simple ways to solve every problem. Only chaotic solutions to solve a simple problem. And it’s been a hell of a ride.”

  • Jannah Dy

    Designer

    I come from a Chinese family and grew up in a Chinese community, and one thing this has taught me was to be practical and honest. These values stayed with me even when I studied architecture. Honesty and functionality have been two of my main design “convictions” and are top of my priorities when designing.

  • Kyo Ortega

    Designer

    Do sketch, go travel, get inspirations, be on point with your ideas and don’t replicate designs cause your design will tell you who you are as a person and as a designer, after all there is no bad design. Amen. Dasvidanya.

  • Carl Clement Rizon

    Designer

    One of the best things that life taught me is to be adaptive. Throughout my educational years on architecture, it started as a difficult and stressful experience but as years gone by, I developed more skills to be better and better at it. Somehow, I also learned how to have fun through the different project challenges. Now I am more willing to take up all what is coming ahead of me

  • Art Joshua Aguirre

    Designer

    Passion. Creativity. Art. Ever since I was a kid, these three things were a constant reminder of how good and wonderful life is. From these three things I found my purpose in life. Passion to do what you love, creativity to cultivate your passion and art to aspire and live life to the fullest.