Collective Conscious

The High Tide side of the Collective features a “depth chart” made of hanging wooden dowels that map the depths of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, designed and installed by local artist Blackmouth Design.

Written by Rachel Gallagher

Photographed by Clay Hayner

Growing up near Olympia, Washington, Alex Monday, Tommy Trause, and Scott Barber spent countless hours playing in the woods, catching fish in Puget Sound, and hiking the seemingly endless miles of trails in the region. As they got older and their nature-related interests intensified—skiing, bouldering, and camping trips became the nexus of their friendship—the trio talked about creating a space for like-minded individuals to gather.

“We were hiking and skiing, and within each of these sports is a really tight-knit community,” notes Trause, now vice president of innovation for ClubCorp, a company that owns and operates more than 200 private membership clubs around the country, including Seattle’s Columbia Tower Club. “We wanted to cross that community with the idea of a traditional private club, but make it less of a space with leather-bound libraries and mahogany shelves and more of an inclusive place where people come to just hang out and share ideas.”

Hanging nest chairs and felt rock pillows provide varies seating in Alpenglow

Bathrooms include spa-quality showers with in-wall speakers

The entry to Alpenglow features a mural by local artist (and the Collective's first artist in residence) Mimi Kvinge.

Born from more than 10 years of scheming, the Collective— owned by ClubCorp—is a private membership-based club, but the space, which opened last April in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood, is decidedly unstuffy, boasting a youthful edge and amenities that include a bouldering wall, an artist-in-residence program, and a hammock garden.

Designed by global design firm Gensler’s Houston and Seattle offices and built by BNBuilders, the Collective is divided into two Northwest-inspired sections: High Tide, a restaurant, bar, and lounge that draws its influences from the sea, and Alpenglow, a unique indoor recreation area. In High Tide, clusters of seating provide places for members to work or socialize, and a bank of alcoves offers quieter retreat. A custom wooden Ping-Pong table featuring an image of the Space Needle, a member-stocked library, and pieces by regional artists Kate Zessel and Mimi Kvinge add touches of city-centric flair.

Alpenglow encourages camaraderie with a “campfire” (a gas fire pit from Design Within Reach) surrounded by wooden benches and cushions. While it might give phone-dependent millennials a dose of anxiety, the tech-free hammock garden is actually popular. For activity seekers, the bouldering wall offers 2,000 square feet of climbing routes that are rearranged monthly.

“The Collective challenges the functional program of social clubs of the past,” notes Chad Yoshinobu, a principal, design, and studio director at Gensler’s Seattle office and principal for the project. “It liberates people from the ‘rule book’ of traditional social clubs and creates an atmosphere of playfulness and joy, which induces comfort between members and becomes the conduit of social interaction.”