The leading authority for the Architecture & Design community
September 6, 2018
Text: Jesse Dorris
Studio BV Builds an Office of Its Own in Minneapolis
Studio BV has only been around since 2015, but they’ve already established a major presence in the greater Minneapolis area, with projects ranging from airy, multi-story private residences and industrial-chic subterranean bars to office spaces sporting bold and unexpected fields of color.
In reception, a painting by Todd Norsten hangs above original birch floors. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.
Sometimes it’s easier to design for others than for yourself, but when it came time for founder and CEO Betsy Vohs to create a new home for her (rapidly expanding) team of 20, the brief was clear: “A place where you can work through complex design ideas and feel just as comfortable having a glass of wine with a client or colleague,” she explains.
The 3,000-square-foot space embraces change, with a variety of open areas that can convert to workspaces as need be, and ample wall space for the firm’s vast collection of paintings, weaving, ceramics, and photography. A branding wall made of blocks, Vohs says, “is a metaphor for design: reworking simple concepts can create design solutions.”
The café offers custom Gubi banquettes covered in Kvadrat’s Remix and Eames tables and chairs. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.High tables in the kitchen area are Silestone Quartz; the stools are by Blu Dot, and brass pendants by Volker Haug. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.In the open office area, Cassina’s LC3 seating gathers before walls covered in Designtex’s Wannabe felt. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.A custom painted wood block wall near the entry is comprised of blocks that can spin to reveal fields of black, charcoal, light gray, or white. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.Watson’s Tonic benching and Acuity task chairs by Allsteel furnish the open office; the lighting is by Watson Lighting. Photograph by Jessica Stoe Photography.A Watson lighting pendant hangs over Knoll’s Rockwell Unscripted Library Table and Haworth’s Poppy chairs in the large conference room. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.Breakout rooms include Steelcase Brody chairs and Humanscale tables. Photograph by Corey Gaffer Photography.
