Background
Common Dwells is a design studio with architecture at its foundation, though its services and expertise extends beyond conventional boundaries.
The studio was formed in 2020, when architects Rebecca Norberg and Agustina García del Río met in Copenhagen. What began as conversations — shaped by Rebecca’s Scandinavian background and Agustina’s Argentinian heritage — evolved into a sustained dialogue across cultures, climates, and design traditions. Shared references, parallel curiosities, and a mutual interest in how people inhabit space laid the groundwork for a distinct way of thinking and working.
From the outset, Common Dwells was driven by a desire to develop new tools rather than replicating existing formulas. This pursuit led to the articulation of The Circadian Home — a conceptual and practical framework that places human biological rhythm at the centre of design. The idea became both the intellectual foundation and the operative method of the studio.
Today, with one part of the practice based on Bornholm, Denmark, and the other in Vancouver, Canada, Common Dwells operates internationally. The studio collaborates with private clients, cultural institutions, and design-led companies on projects across architecture, interiors, objects, and research — unified by a commitment to designing in alignment with the rhythms that shape daily life.
Founders
AGUSTINA GARCIA DEL RIO
Agustina works as an architect and designer, she also teaches at Emily Carr University of Art and Design.
Agustina has spent the past eleven years working across a diverse range of disciplines, including architecture, interiors, furniture, stage design, jewellery, photography and creative direction. She also held a position as a professor at the University of Buenos Aires for eight years before relocating to Copenhagen and then moving to Vancouver where she’s currently residing.
Architect (Argentina)
B. Arch, M. Arch, M. Teaching Specialist in Architecture, Design and Urbanism.
REBECCA NORBERG
Rebecca works as an architect, designer and creative director.
Rebecca has spent the last decade working in different positions within the architecture and design industry. Based in Scandinavia, she has worked for both globally renowned cultural institutions, design companies, associations, and on a diverse range of projects.
Architect (Denmark)
B. Landscape Arch., MA. Architecture, Design and Interiors.