Danielé Perna
Living Design: A Vision Worth Living
Living Design for Presence, Beauty, and Becoming
Daniele Perna Designs
A true home is not merely a shelter of walls and roof — it is a sanctuary for the soul. Humans move through the world carrying unseen dimensions — perceptions, emotions, desires, and energies — and the interiors we inhabit have the power to either nurture or diminish these subtle realities. Through intuition, deep listening, and a reverence for the invisible needs of the spirit, Daniele creates interiors that are not merely beautiful, but living sanctuaries where life’s deeper rhythms are protected, restored, and renewed.
A home is a mirror — a reflection of the soul within. It carries the imprint of values, longings, childhood dreams, and the wisdom we gather through time. True living spaces are not constructed from trends or mimicry; they are born from authenticity. A well-designed home awakens joy, inspires creativity, and becomes sacred ground where the spirit can grow and evolve. Positive space is not accidental — it is a deliberate act of aligning with the rhythms of human experience. This is the essence of Living Design: interiors that breathe, heal, and become part of the soul’s unfolding journey.
The spaces we inhabit are not passive backdrops — they are living forces. They influence how we feel, how we think, and how we choose to live. In an increasingly complex world, the quality of our interiors becomes essential to emotional balance, mental clarity, and the arc of human growth. Living Design is founded on this truth: that soul-centered environments have the capacity to reshape our emotional states, uplift awareness, and nurture a life worth living. Every project is an invitation — not just to create beauty, but to craft a catalyst for renewal, presence, and inner alignment.
True design is a form of revelation. Beyond education, status, or culture, every human being responds intuitively to the language of space: color, light, materials, texture, proportion, and form. These elements shape the emotional architecture of a room. A space infused with intentional design awakens perception, eases the body’s stress response, and quietly stirs our deeper knowing. Living Design holds this central belief: that beauty is not indulgence, but a source of clarity and resonance — a portal to dignity, restoration, and remembrance. In an age of simulation and excess, Daniele designs interiors and crafts architecture where the human spirit remembers itself — and rises.
Design is not about imposing a style; it is about unveiling a truth. Beneath trends and programming, each individual carries a unique resonance — a design frequency encoded in memory and feeling. Daniele’s role is not to complicate the client’s world, but to reveal the authentic aesthetic encoded in both their conscious and unconscious realms. Through deep listening, architectural sensitivity, and a layered visual process, he creates interiors where the true self can settle, expand, and feel at home. A vision worth living is not invented — it is retrieved, embodied, and brought into form.
Living Design Across All Realms of Life
Living Design is not limited to residential work; it is a philosophy that breathes across all dimensions of human experience. Whether crafting a boutique hotel that welcomes travelers into restful thresholds, a wellness spa that supports cycles of recovery, a workplace that inspires clarity and focus, or a dojo that honors lineage and discipline — each space is shaped by the same guiding intention: to nourish presence, elevate experience, and support transformation. Each genre requires its own rhythm — attuned to the function it serves and the community it holds — yet the foundation remains the same: Spaces are alive. Spaces shape us. Spaces must be designed not only to function, but to resonate with those who dwell within them. Living Design brings coherence to commerce, grace to hospitality, mindfulness to healing, and soulfulness to every setting where human presence takes root.
Living Design is the sacred art of human experience. Wherever life happens, Living Design belongs.
Residential Projects
Daniele’s new residential portfolio includes homes in Manhattan, Telluride (CO), San Francisco (CA), and Phoenix (AZ), including one completed apartments on West 12th Street in Greenwich Village and a new Upper West Side apartment project.
Commercial, Boutique, and Wellness Projects
Beyond residential design, Daniele has led boutique hotel, retail, and wellness projects distinguished by their conceptual clarity and emotional resonance. Work includes the Zafran Boutique Hotel in Italy, the MXYPLYZYK retail store in New Jersey, the Joan Shepp fashion boutique in Philadelphia, and YogaSmoga flagship studios in Connecticut and California. These projects reflect the same ethos of Living Design — creating spaces that elevate daily life while aligning commerce, hospitality, and healing with beauty and presence.
Creative Work: Flower Photography
In addition to architectural practice, Daniele is preparing a flower photography exhibition featuring large-scale prints (three by four feet and larger) that extend the philosophy of Living Design into the realm of visual art.
Martial Arts & Philosophy: Living Design in Motion
Alongside his design practice, Daniele has pursued a lifelong path in martial arts. He began training at his first dojo in West Philadelphia under Sensei Teruyuki Okazaki — then already a senior Shotokan master (later recognized worldwide as 10th dan) and founder of the ISKF, in direct lineage from Gichin Funakoshi and Masatoshi Nakayama.
When his daughter was five years old, he enrolled her at Ken-Wa Kan Dojo in New York City, founded by Shihan Michelle Gay. By age eleven, she had become highly skilled, achieved her Shodan (first-degree black belt), and advanced into adult classes. Inspired by her path, Daniele joined Ken-Wa Kan himself in 2018. He trained intensively — often attending 8–12 classes per week — and after six and a half years of practice, earned his own Shodan in December 2022. He concluded his training at Ken-Wa Kan in the summer of 2025.
He now continues at Iwata Dojo in New York City under Shihan Hiroshi Iwata, training in Kyokushin kata and full-contact kumite. In parallel, he trains at Ronin Kai Karate, immersing himself in the broader samurai curriculum — including kata, kumite, Aikido grips and throws, and comprehensive weapons practice. At Ronin Kai, he is working toward his Nidan (second-degree black belt) under Shihan Bhinda, a sixth-degree weapons master whose lineage traces back to Masutatsu (Mas) Oyama, the founder of Kyokushin Karate in Japan.
He also trains privately with Senpai Daniel, a fourth-degree black belt whose earlier career as a professional ballet dancer with the National Ballet Company of Uruguay adds a rare dimension of movement artistry to their practice.
Philosophy: Bushidō, Zen Buddhism, and the Way of the Samurai
Daniele’s path in martial arts is not limited to physical training — it incorporates the study of Bushidō, Zen Buddhism, and the philosophical tradition of the samurai. These teachings form a spiritual and intellectual foundation that parallels his design practice. The Seven Virtues of Bushidō — rectitude, courage, benevolence, respect, honesty, honor, and loyalty — act as a moral compass, guiding both life and work. Just as the samurai aligned body, spirit, and sword, Daniele aligns form, presence, and soul in architecture and interiors. The discipline of Zen deepens this path, emphasizing mindfulness, simplicity, and reverence for the unseen. Together, these traditions bring balance, clarity, and integrity to his creative and professional practice.
For Daniele, martial arts and design are not separate pursuits but expressions of the same essence: aligning body, mind, and spirit through form, discipline, and presence. Karate and kata are built on angles, geometry, rhythm, and flow — the same principles that govern architecture and interiors. Both practices demand precision, clarity, and commitment, with only about one in 10,000 students achieving black belt rank. These principles are fully embodied in his work as an architect and designer.
"A quality of life, design has the potential to change our emotional state, the way we think, and choose to live."
Danielé lives and works in New York’s West Village. His daughter, Isabella, is in her third year at the University of Virginia (UVA). He balances his professional practice between New York City and ongoing projects in Telluride, Colorado.
