About
Workbench is a studio composed of architects, industrial designers, and makers dedicated to blending traditional craft techniques with cutting-edge technology to design and build pieces at all scales. Anywhere from fine furniture, architectural installations to bespoke millwork for interiors. We also design and develop novel architectural materials, to elevate spatial experiences through form, light, and texture. Crafted to last with the finest quality.
Rooted in craft and guided by curiosity, our work moves fluidly across disciplines and scales. We prototype ideas, test boundaries, and develop custom solutions that respond to the specific needs of a space, a vision, or a question worth asking.
We collaborate with designers, artists, and dreamers, bringing ambitious concepts to life through material development, fabrication, or creative support. At our core, we are a platform for experimentation, dedicated to making what doesn’t yet exist.
Materializing curiosity is what better describes what we do, and our promise.
Awards:
2022 Western Living Industrial Designer of the year
2022 Made in Vancouver Award for White Ash wooden bicycle
Mario Paredes
Founder / Principal
Mario is an architect and industrial designer from Barcelona, based in beautiful Vancouver since 2016. He came to Canada in pursuit of deepening his knowledge of wood-based design and construction techniques.
From an early age, Mario has been a hands on designer, working through disciplines like woodworking, fine furniture making, tool making, metalworking, and concrete forming. In recent years, his practice has expanded to include explorations in glass, ceramics, and jewelry-inspired processes, each material offering new forms of expression and possibility.
Inspired by design, materiality, texture, and fabrication processes, Mario aims to create work that is honest and enduring and finds beauty in the interplay of volume, light, and shadow.
Tomoki Kaneko
Designer / Project Coordinator
Tomoki was born in Japan and moved to Vancouver at a young age. The two places share a culture of forests and wood construction, which shaped his childhood and continues to influence his work.
He recently completed his Bachelor of Architecture at the University of Waterloo where he took on co-ops in cities across North America, in a variety of fields from architecture, metal work to lighting design.
On weekends, you'll find him running or planning the next hiking adventure.
Paula Torres
Designer / Material Researcher
Paula Torres is an Industrial Designer who graduated from Emily Carr University of Art + Design. Her work is shaped by a curiosity for materials and making, with interests spanning ceramics, textiles, and bio-based products.
She is passionate about exploring sustainable and tactile design solutions between traditional craft and modern innovation.
Beyond her design practice, Paula enjoys hands-on processes that deepen her understanding of materials, whether through sculpting clay, weaving textiles, or researching new sustainable alternatives.
She finds inspiration in nature and patterns, drawing from organic forms and textures to inform her creative approach.
Daithí Ó Beag
Designer / Lead Fabricator