Bassetti Architects Launches Artist Residency Program

An empty wall in Bassetti Architects’ office in Pioneer Square Seattle was the point of inspiration for an immersive new program the architecture firm is heading. Born from the desire for a mutually beneficial relationship with the local art community, Bassetti’s inaugural Artist in Residence (AIR) Program explores storytelling, reengaging creativity, and the crossover of traditional art mediums and the built environment.

Finding the Intersection of Art and Architecture

In a world of design software and technical specifications, how do we connect with our artistic side as designers? Motivated by questions such as this, Bassetti’s new program is built to reengage staff with artistic motivations, exploratory methods, and the fun of design. As a firm with a long history in our Seattle neighborhoods, we want to continue to see Seattle’s diverse art community thrive – as they’ve helped us thrive over the years. 

The AIR Program attempts to answer the question: How can we create a mutually supportive relationship between art and architecture?

Meet the Artist: Monyee Chau

Finding harmony between a layered lineage, the flavors of a family restaurant, and supporting the community that raised them, Seattle artist Monyee Chau creates bold pieces, through the nuance of personal experience. Their work leaves no material untouched as they explore themes of Chinese mythology, labor, identity, food, and how we are shaped by and exert influence on the world around us. Invoking a sense of peace and familiarity amongst the chaos of life, their work is pensive and illustrative.

Monyee was born to a family of restaurateurs in Seattle’s International District, and their grandfather’s restaurant was the first in the city to serve live seafood. Chinese takeout containers, Peking Duck, and street markets punctuate their prints, paintings, and illustrations. Amidst the brightly colored works, themes of unity and perseverance challenge the threat of gentrification and the overhaul of ancestral stories. Visions of love and labor appear side by side in their work, just as Monyee saw play out during their childhood at the family restaurant. 

An Exercise in Our Surroundings

Monyee’s work is a stark reminder of the impact that art can have on our neighborhoods. As visionaries of the Seattle Skyline, Chau challenges us to understand what our responsibilities are; fostering a design process which creates a collaborative relationship with the history and lineage of a space, building, and community. Singing loudly the stories of Asian Americans, their pieces proudly position their legacy alongside the history of Seattle, as one and the same.

Kicking off the program, Monyee engaged staff across both the Seattle and Portland offices in an artists’ workshop and a series of smaller group meetings. Bassetti staff came with an open mind and a myriad of experience across the design industry. Delving into the history of the Chinese Zodiac, each staff member was challenged to create a drawing of their personal zodiac. The results were revisioning of stories we had heard before, cumulative efforts between staff to create unique scenes, and experiments with sketching and color. This creativity and storytelling set the scene for the three-month residency.

Twelve Nights on Heaven’s Headrest

The culmination of our first Artist in Residence program resulted in a display entitled, “Twelve Nights on Heaven’s Headrest.” The showcase included twelve gouache paintings, one of each character from the Chinese Zodiac. An exploration of color, mythology, and identity, Monyee creates a bold reimagining of classic faces showcasing the motivations and meanings behind the birth stories. The entire collection is on exhibit at the Museum of Museums, opening July 29th.

The Artist in Residence program brings together each of Bassetti’s departments– architects, interiors, graphic designers, marketing, and admin staff– together into a unified mission of reengaging our creativity. The start of the Artist in Residence program was truly exceptional, leaving us eagerly anticipating its return.