Under the leadership of Sarah Giesenhagen, The Bureau is a design collective that places collaboration with artists, photographers, and fellow designers at the heart of every project. This summer, the collective has designed the interior spaces, along with numerous custom pieces crafted by over 30 creative minds, for a glass pavilion housing a winery in an awe-inspiring location.
Located in Northern California (just a short drive southeast of Napa Valley), Caymus-Suisun includes a 5,500-square-foot / 511-square-meter glass tasting room pavilion with retractable walls and operable transom windows on all four sides that allow the building to open completely to the surroundings; a retail building; 29 acres / 12 hectares of orchards, vegetable gardens and a “walking vineyard”. It offers visitors an exploratory experience spread across two buildings and traversable vineyards with a range of indoor and outdoor seating, tasting, and retail space.
Bohlin Cywinski Jackson was in charge of the architecture and the interior design of the different spaces was done by The Bureau in collaboration with Thad Geldert of Geldert. The Bureau was also in charge of the curation. As a result, the majority of the furnishings, fixtures, art, and attire were custom-crafted by over 30 creative collaborators.
LGS Studio: a collaborative design and ceramic art studio led by Thomas Renaud and Noel Hennessy.
Giesenhagen noticed LGS about 5 or 6 years ago when they were showcasing their stud lamps. She placed one in a residential project. From there she kept an eye on them.
“They evolve their designs and textures so frequently it is a delight to watch,” says Giesenhagen. “I had noticed a particular texture on one example and the scale looked to be growing. I inquired about going even bigger to create the set of 17 custom monolith planters we did for the Caymus-Suisun winery. We also did a pair of custom sconces on that project and a set of containers that insert into the concrete tasting bar. From there, we have begun collaborating on other pieces on various projects.”
Waka Waka: a studio led by Shin Okuda, who designs and handcrafts wood furniture and functional objects.
Giesenhagen noticed Shin’s work around 7 years ago. “I admired the commitment to working with one particular material (plywood) and iterating and playing with what all you can do with it,” she says. “His work is at once simplistic yet very considered and cleanly detailed. I had kept Shin in the top tier of my mental queue of artists I wanted to work with in a bigger way. When the Caymus-Suisun project came along it was a great opportunity. We did a suite of 28 custom indoor/outdoor chairs and tasting tables and a custom bar cart for that project. I have since done multiple other custom pieces and look to do more.”
Tanya Aguiñiga: works with traditional craft materials and regularly collaborates with other artists and activists to create sculptures, installations, performances, and community-based art projects.
In the private tasting room of Caymus-Suisun, the hanging sculpture by Tanya Aguiñiga was inspired by the burn piles found ablaze around wine country after a vineyard is cleared. In the flames the branches curl, turn black, and then to ash. The sculpture is constructed with a combination of naturally dyed materials including cotton and cane, all woven together to evoke rebirth by fire.
“I deeply admire and hold great respect for the act of creation,” says Giesenhagen. “I find new artists daily I would like to collaborate with. I watch for artists that want to get their voice out there, I watch for people who are forging against adversity to create space for themselves and for their communities, I watch for the odd, the curious, clever, the brazen but graceful, those that can create such a strong visual presence you feel moved or provoked in a beautiful way, for those who love what they do and show signs of wanting to further their thread of creating into the future… For The Bureau, collaboration is a direct line to being a part of and sharing soulful work.”
Video Credits:
Directed by Yoshihiro Makino
Music by Carlos Niño, Idris Ackamoor, Nate Mercereau. Recorded by Jesse Peterson live at Caymus-Suisun Winery
Video and Post-Production by Two Blue Drones + Digital
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