Vendome Press publishes ‘Inside Ibiza’, a book with some of the most amazing houses on the island. Emma Askari Roig, owner of one of them, tells us about the process.

It all started with the Covid. When the frightened world came to a standstill, Ibiza became a refuge. ‘We became friends with a very diverse group : people from different cultures, different generations and very different lifestyles’, explains Emma Askari Roig (Valencia, 58 years old), author of Inside Ibiza, a coffee table book published by Vendome Press that brings together 22 spectacular houses on the island of Ibiza. “In Ibiza there were very few occupied houses and as soon as we were allowed to get together we went . We were a totally disparate clan that with we were lucky enough to be anchored on the island and it came together by chance. It was an accident, a fantastic coincidence”, continues this enthusiastic woman, ambassador for Christie’s, art collector and niece of Juan Roig.

A year and a half earlier, the American edition of AD magazine had published the photos of his house, a construction full of light and peace designed by the Canadian-born architect Rolf Blakstad, an expert in traditional Ibizan architecture . ‘The owner of Vendome Press offered me the chance to do a project on Ibiza including different houses of people who love the island’, recalls Askari about the project, which includes houses of people as diverse as a former footballer, a architect, a decorator and even a duchess.

How did you choose the houses?

I chose houses with a very strong DNA, which reflected the personality of the owner. They should be different enough to to cover the whole spectrum of the people who pass by the island. Most of them are author’s works, ideas of the owner. Very few are made only by decorators.

Which are your favourites and why?

I love the one by a German-Mexican artist, Stefan Brüggemann, because it is a work of art. It’s lined with gold panels where has written poetry and has one of the most original and spiritual gardens I’ve ever seen. I also like [Belgian-German businessman and former footballer] Bobby Dekeyser’s, a sort of Noah’s ark with 40 alpacas, many dogs, cats… He shares the house with his children and his grandchildren and has a football pitch where practices with his old friends from when he was part of Bayern Munich. I also really like Miranda Makaroff’s, she’s an absolutely fascinating character. She is one of the island’s jewels. Established artists such as Marina Abramovich admire her art and her style, which is tremendously spontaneous and at the same time provocative

How was your collaboration with with the photographer Ricardo Labougle?

Two decades ago Ricardo and I shared the same circles and friendships but we had never met. This project made us team, also with his partner, Gustavo Peruyera, and the producer of Vendome Press, Guido Vincenzini. We were the four musketeers. Ricardo has an exceptional sensitivity and takes spectacular photos with natural light. We had an incredible time. Especially because in moments of desperation, of getting lost or having everything ready and it raining or there was a setback, there was always a great sense of humour. We have become very close friends.

What were some of the craziest situations experienced during the making of the book?

It was exciting because we got lost in the mountains of Ibiza. People would send directions to their houses: “Let’s put a red bag on a stick”. But when you got there, had been blown up. ‘Take the path with the yellow stone’. But there were two roads with yellow stones. It was like Treasure Island. If you got lost, you were dead because there was no GPS or phone. People think that Ibiza is small, which it is, but it can be very big because there are immensely hidden places where there are no people or coverage.

In 2013 you bought a plot of land to make a house on the island. Why did you choose Ibiza?

My husband told me that after 20 years it was time to settle down and look for a place to set up a summer house. Ibiza is the closest thing to Valencia, my home town, because of the light, the countryside, the smell of the herbs… It has been inhabited by many civilisations and although it is all on a small scale, I look at the sea, and the Montgó [Natural Park] from the terrace and I feel at home. There is no light that embraces me more than that of Valencia and Ibiza

What was the process of building the house like?

Rolph Blakstad and I designed it. I gave him ideas and he transformed them with that infinite knowledge he has of the island because he was born here and his father, who came to Ibiza in 1953, was one of the greatest experts in Ibizan architecture. We laughed a lot although there were moments when I think he wanted to strangle me, which is an unmistakable sign that a collaboration is being successful.

Her sister was also involved.

She is an expert in restoring historic buildings in Valencia. She was instrumental in bringing in the craftsmen and materials that were to be used and that have turned my house into something very special. A paradise project for me and my family.

Have you convinced anyone to make a home there?

First of all my husband, who is impossible to convince of anything. And my children, who didn’t want to at first. Now it is our favourite place. Some friends, infected by our enthusiasm, have decided to buy a house.

Do you like to invite people over?

It’s a family house and that’s how we use it. Sometimes we invite friends to spend a week with us. So do my children. But it is not a party house. It’s more for our time of rest, of shelter, of relaxed enjoyment. When we go, it’s dolce far niente. Very relaxed mornings, walks in the countryside, hiking, discovering coves…

How long have you been linked to Ibiza?

When I was a child my parents would take us there from time to time but it was during my teenage years when we would sail from Jávea to Ibiza and we would travel around the island by sea. We would visit the clubs very sensibly because the next morning we had to sail back. I realised that it was a wonderful island and since then I try to convince people to put aside their prejudices and discover the magical side of Ibiza.