When he installed his apartment and studio in an 18th-century palace in the Madrid town of Aranjuez, the creative director and scenographer Jorge Parra had no interest in masterminding a contemporary revamp. Instead he chose to amplify the antique, sometimes crumbling history of the place. With peeling wallpaper, unfinished surfaces and a hodgepodge of furniture that testifies to the Spanish aesthete’s eye for a good auction find, the home exudes eclectic opulence. Parra’s pajama-inspired clothing label, House of Bows, encourages nostalgic dreams of days gone by and his decadent home invites visitors to indulge in the same. 

Agnish Ray: How’d you end up living here?

Jorge Parra: The Medinaceli Palace was built in the mid-1700s. My ancestors were related to the Medinaceli family, s...