HAVEN:
AN INTERVIEW WITH SIGNUM ARCHITECTURE
25 February 2025
I have admired the work of Signum Architecture from a distance for quite a while. One of the things I appreciate most about Signum founders Jarrod Denton and Juancarlos Fernandez is the way they live and practice their values. Their website opens with words after my own heart: “We create places that connect, sustain and inspire.” So I was excited to sit down with Jarrod to talk about what inspires him, how he embodies his strongly-held values in his practice and in his projects, and how he and Juancarlos have worked together to build a practice that will live beyond them, continuing to make a difference in the world. It was a heartfelt and enlightening conversation. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did."
MQ: One of the things that impresses me most is how your work embodies your values.
JD: Sustainability is at the top. Our aim is for every project to be as sustainable as possible – whatever form that ends up taking. However, sustainability often comes naturally from design that is thoughtful and efficient, regardless of certification. We ask a lot of questions early on to understand the heart of our client’s vision, being as scrutinizing about all of the components from the very beginning.
We’re a team creating something bigger than ourselves."
MQ: Those conversations matter so much…
JD: Have you heard of the book The Sociology of Architecture? It addresses the role of architecture in how our identities are constructed, both personal and collective. If a client wants a craftsman style house, for example, that dream may come from a childhood memory of a house across the street from where he or she grew up. What the client is really envisioning is something that recreates that feeling of home, but not necessarily an exact replica of the house that lives in their memory. Diving into those memories, we find out what the client is really connecting with. It takes time and attention to unpack.
MQ: Where do you find your inspiration?
JD: It’s not as much about the building itself as it is about connection to place. Context, for me, is so important. Our kids were raised in Yountville. Our family lived in a condo close to downtown, so life was very much about public spaces. It’s a European approach to living. A little over a year ago, we moved our firm’s office to downtown Napa, where we’re part of the community, close to many of the consultants we work with – the hardware store, the city’s most beloved book store, restaurants, building departments, consultants, the businesses that make up the fabric of the community. Most of us walk or bike to work now. It’s a revelation, and it came about through our connection to the place.
MQ: You really are leading a European way of life!
JD: That’s exactly why I feel a connection to civic organization. We’re part of the community here, and when you are part of the community, you want to contribute and make it the best it can be.
MQ: Is your design practice mostly regional?
JD: We’re deeply embedded in the California wine country, but our practice covers the whole West Coast. We are working extensively in Paso Robles, Carmel and along the Central Coast. I love the fields in Oregon, Juancarlos is designing several wineries in the Pacific Northwest, and my wife is from Hawaii… I feel a pull to work there as well.
MQ: I know that you are a leader in Passive House design. How many Passive Houses have you designed?
JD: Less than we would like. I was definitely an early adopter. I went to a conference in Frankfurt, Germany in 2009 to learn about Passive House principles. The conference brought together interesting people who wanted to do better, which was inspiring. In 2010 I completed a residential renovation in downtown Sonoma that was the first certified Passive House retrofit in the United States.
Since then, I’ve learned that you can walk the walk, embodying the principles in the design, without actually pursuing certification, and still make a difference. Many owners don’t want to take on the additional time and money the certification process involves, but they are enthusiastic about having a healthy and resilient home. The cost differential has changed – there used to be a 10 to 12 percent cost differential, and now there is virtually no difference in construction cost between a Passive House and a conventional build for new construction.
MQ: So why aren’t these principles more widely adopted?
JD: Like so many things, it’s about education and understanding. Passive House is still not predominant, but it is much more mainstream than it was when I designed that first Passive House-certified project. I have more clients asking about it – not only residential clients, but in hospitality as well. We can work with nature instead of ignoring it. CADE Estate is a great example – when Juancarlos designed the production building, he sited and designed it to allow cross-breezes to naturally cool and ventilate it, so there is no need to condition it. These are tried and true design principles.
MQ: Your work is so connected to the land. How do you tackle a project?
JD: We get to know the land. We bike to it, hike on it, camp on it, visit at different times of day in different conditions. We need to experience how the different microclimates work, when the fog rolls in and out. Juancarlos has been known to sit and sketch on site with his bike and a bottle of wine. I’m an avid cycler, and that’s part of the appeal of cycling for me – I’ve biked almost every road within a 300-mile radius of our office.
You have to understand what the land is giving."
MQ: Every project is so different, because every client is different. How does that impact your approach?
JD: People hold value in the things they’ve collected over the years, part of our job is to create a vessel for that.
MQ: I agree. These things hold energy from a different time and place. Where do you begin?
JD: Juancarlos and I hold the same values, the same goals, the same respect for the land and the same wish to elevate our clients’ everyday lives. But we go about it differently. Juancarlos starts with sketches, usually at his kitchen counter at home interestingly enough. I start in my head, usually outside of business hours, mulling over the challenge until I come to a core concept, usually inspired by nature and the outdoors. I tinker with it. Then we go from there. However, I make sure not to become more attached to that first concept than I am to the relationship between the challenge and the solution, because I have to remain open to evolution and change. Conditions change, clients change, possibilities change.
MQ: In the end, we’re designing for human beings, and it’s unpredictable.
JD: Every human is unique, and unpredictability is part of the process. It’s a shared journey, and that’s something special.
MQ: What is one of the most important things you’ve learned over the years?
JD: My wife is an educator, and I accompanied her on a senior class trip to Panama. It was an important experience, learning that there are so many ways to arrive at good solutions. In Latin America, the architect for a project is also the foreman on the construction site, employing people, directing the labor and getting the project built. It reinforced for me that the closer you are to the land and the project, the better you understand it.
I finally understand the gravitas of why an architect usually peaks in his or her 60s. It’s a profession where you have to learn so much along the way. Our understanding of other human beings evolves over time, and that impacts what we do.
You truly have to be a renaissance person."
MQ: Are there any pitfalls?
JD: We’ve designed and constructed a lot of projects by now, so much of the time concepts come easier. But there is also the danger of falling into a rut, where we stop being as creative. We have to guard against that.
MQ: What makes Signum different?
JD: We’ve worked really hard to cultivate relationships – with our clients, our collaborators, our community, our staff. It makes a difference. We understand the wine country because it’s where we live, we know about wine-making, we understand hospitality. Another area that we have cultivated, and where I think we’ve come to excel, is in the communion between architecture and art. We’ve been blessed to collaborate with world-class artists, developing a dialogue about the interaction between the art and the space that holds it, working hand-in-hand with artists in real time.
MQ: What is beauty to you?
JD: Our goal is to have an impact emotionally, move people’s souls and elevate their lives. The entire process of what we do is intensive, so why waste the opportunity to make a difference in this way? It’s not about instant gratification. Our goal is to create architecture that lasts. There is beauty in simplicity and use. Touching a limestone handrail, for example, that is worn by use and time.
MQ: I couldn’t agree more. What is one of the qualities that most defines you?
JD: I’m an optimist. I have to be. I want to leave the world a better place.
MQ: That’s part of the significance of the name you chose for your firm.
JD: It is. Our firm is designed to live beyond us, and be something more than us. That’s why Juancarlos and I decided from day one not to put our names on the door. Everyone here buys into that and our employees feel they make a meaningful contribution to the whole.
We’re a team creating something bigger than ourselves."
We love to finish up with some fun, rapid-fire questions, so here we go…
MQ: What’s the one thing you love most about what you do?
JD: Every day is unique, with new opportunities to exercise the creative side of my mind.
MQ: Who — or what — inspires you?
JD: Poets, authors, artists, friends, colleagues, nature, travel, other cultures, musicians, and many others. I enjoy constantly learning and having new experiences.
MQ: What’s the single best business or creative advice you’ve ever received?
JD: Simple beauty is something I strive for when I look for creative input or advice. On the business side of things, I’ve learned to never underestimate the power of not needing to pursue every opportunity. Remaining humble but being in a position where you can seek the best opportunities or accept projects that are meaningful to you is powerful and liberating.
MQ: If you weren’t doing this, what would you be doing?
JD: A travel expedition guide leading excursions that combine architecture, cycling/skiing, and outdoor adventure.
MQ: How do you love spending time outside of work?
JD: Outdoors being inspired by nature or connecting with friends and family.
MQ: What is one thing that most people don’t know about you?
JD: What an incredible wife I have. She has been a principal, social studies teacher, drama teacher, and life mentor for nearly 30 years to high school kids in the Napa Valley. Essentially she compliments me, with all of the attributes that I am missing.
MQ: Last book you read?
JD: I’ll list two: AWE by Dacher Keitner & Creative Act A Way Of Being by Rick Rubin
MQ: Do you have a favorite quote? If so, we’d love to hear it!
AW: That is difficult to limit to just one, but I will go with the Alchemist: “When you want something with all your heart, the universe will conspire in helping you achieve it.”