Renovation for Creation

Words by Abby L. Johnson Photos by Leonid Furmansky

When Pollen Architecture first met the film directors and team behind award-winning production studio, The Bear, they were working their video-making magic out of a charming 1950s home that lacked their growing business needs. Now, their creative space is much more functional and sleek than it once was. While the home itself was functional for day-to-day operations, they needed a dedicated space in-house for meetings and screenings for their clients.  

The Bear’s full-service production team cleverly saw potential to add more usable space to their studio by converting the unused garage into an editing suite and viewing room. Prior to architectural intervention, the garage was a musty subterranean area subject to flooding where storage wasn’t even an option. Over the course of six months, Pollen Architecture turned the unusable garage into a multifunctional 530 square-foot workspace.

Besides solving the drainage issues on the lot, one of the most significant structural changes made was the addition of a wall to section off the garage into three separate spaces: the main editing suite and viewing room, a flex space in the back, and between, a spacious, modern full bathroom.

The walls and portions of the ceiling were carefully clad with warm wood tones using smooth plywood, adding almost a picture frame effect. Pollen co-founder and architectural designer, Elizabeth Alford, explains, “We like plywood for this space because it’s kind of rough and ready feeling. It’s affordable, and it [gives] a sense of where the material came from. You see the fingerprint of the tree, and it gives [the space] a sense of warmth.” This careful attention to functionality and use of materials is marked throughout the renovation. Even the grain of each wooden panel was carefully aligned to create seamless transitions. 

Each of Pollen’s projects gives thought to how natural light flows through the space, a design aspect that was especially important in this project because it needed to function as both an editing workspace and screening room. The need for ample daylight posed a bit of a challenge. The garage is positioned at the bottom of a sloping driveway, making it an underground hideaway. The Pollen team decided to utilize large sliding glass doors to allow natural light to pour in. Knowing this could cause a glare on the large screen the directors would soon use to display their work, Pollen chose doors that included built-in blackout curtains between the two panes of glass that would shutter out the sun at their leisure.

Project Manager John Algood points out the simple lines and natural design elements, noting that “part of what was great about working with [The Bear] is that they had so many nice pieces. So that’s where splashes of color come in. They had great taste so we could restrain some of the design elements.” Today, the former garage functions as a modern workspace and client hangout, outfitted with touches of rugged, yet modern, style inspired by the studio’s namesake. It’s an inviting space fueled by the creative energy brought by The Bear and channelled through Pollen’s thoughtful design. 

Contact: 
Pollen Architecture
1224 E 12^th St., Suite 210
pollenarchitecture.com
info@pollenarchitecture.com
The Bear
janice@thebear.us
thebear.us
@thebear.us