Odette Ladies

This unique work of public art was part of our ongoing collaboration with the Plumpjack Group in which Signum designed the production winery, wine cave portal and logo for Odette Estate – all inspired by Odette, the swan princess in Tchaikovsky’s ballet Swan Lake and the winery’s namesake. Set on the Silverado Trail in Napa Valley’s Stag’s Leap district, Odette Estate is highly visible from the highway, as if on stage. However, for visitors travelling along the adjacent Silverado Trail, the view of the winery comes just a bit too late, forcing them to turn around or miss the winery entirely. The winery needed a sign to announce the winery’s presence, but restrictions and setback requirements limited the options.   Our answer was to think outside the box, designing a sculpture that simultaneously signaled the presence of the winery and symbolized the femininity, strength and power of the architecture and brand. The “three ladies” are the first forms visitors encounter as the road crests and the Odette vineyards come into view. The three-dimensional forms are comprised of hollow, fiberglass forms covering a lightweight frame, very much like a boat, and mounted on steel plates set below grade so they appear to float. Designed to be viewed from a moving car, as they are virtually 100% of the time, the forms line up to form the distinctive Odette logo from a single point along the road. The rest of the time, the organic shapes appear to twist and turn – a vision of three ladies dancing through the vineyard.