MASHstudios to Craft Furniture for LACMA's David Geffen Wing

Bernard Brucha, founder of Los Angeles design office MASHstudios, has been selected by architect Peter Zumthor to create all cabinetry, vitrines, pedestals, and tables for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's new David Geffen wing. The project, costing $724 million and spanning 110,000 square feet, began with an anonymous call and a tour of MASHstudios' Orange County factory. Zumthor, a Pritzker Prize laureate with a background in cabinetmaking, personally visited the studio, examined finishes and joinery, and declared the team would make the museum's furniture. Brucha, who has admired Zumthor since starting his career, emphasized locality, using honest local wood from the West Coast. Each display piece was custom-designed for specific artworks, from Greek busts to Francis Bacon paintings, with a motto that each piece must be able to lift an elephant. The studio used solid steel to balance walnut wood and glass. MASHstudios, founded in New York nearly three decades ago, has previously worked with clients like Goop, Apple, Uber, Yelp, and Chanel. Brucha described the opportunity as a career first and a moment he had been training for his entire career.