WHERE WOOD TRANSFORMS
An exploration of craftsmanship, design, and the unpredictable beauty of nature.
A look into our work
NATURE AS CO-DESIGNER
OUR PROCESS
We work with wood as both material and collaborator. Rather than seeking to completely control it, we create conditions that allow its natural character and biological processes to unfold.
A significant part of our practice involves fungi. We intentionally introduce controlled fungal growth into the wood, allowing it to transform the material from within. We guide the process, but we cannot determine exactly what will emerge. The patterns, colors, and markings are created by the organism itself and cannot be replicated by hand.
Knowing when to intervene, and when to let nature continue, is an essential part of our process. We observe, respond, and ultimately decide when the transformation has reached its point.
We work primarily with sustainably sourced, locally fallen and responsibly recovered wood from the highlands of Panamá. From milling and shaping to joinery and finishing, we remain closely involved with the material throughout its transformation.
Each piece is therefore the result of two forces: human intention and natural processes unfolding beyond our control.
OUR VISION
Based in the highlands of Panamá, Perey Studio is a family-run design and woodworking practice founded by architect and designer Jina Peña and craftsman Derek Urey.
Our work is rooted in a deep connection to this landscape, its biodiversity, and the honest materials that surround us. We believe wood carries a history of place, time, and transformation, and that our role is not always to perfect it, but to reveal it.
We are interested in the space between control and surrender: designing with intention while leaving room for the unexpected. Fungi, grain, weathering, and time become part of the story rather than imperfections to be concealed. For us, natural processes are not simply aesthetic elements. They are collaborators. They create something that could not have existed through human intervention alone.
As a family, we have chosen to build our practice around a slower and more intentional relationship with making, nature, and one another. Since 2016, we have created furniture and wood art that invites people to see wood not as a finished material, but as something alive with character, history, and the possibility of transformation.
Connect with Us
Lets make something.
For inquiries or collaborations, reach out to us.