Talk Shop: Dana Bergman & Erica Vassalotti // Bergman Vass
Photo by Brian Wetzel
ABOUT DANA & ERICA
Bergman Vass is a design studio that knows how to make classic feel fresh. Led by Dana Bergman and Erica Vassalotti, the duo blends timeless architecture with modern sensibility, layering traditional details with unexpected touches that feel effortlessly personal. Their work is rooted in simplicity, smart planning, and thoughtful collaboration—with artisans, architects, builders, and most importantly, the people who live in the homes they create. The result? Interiors that are serene, collected, and full of life—a true reflection of lives well lived.
Photo by Brian Wetzel
Describe your style in three words or less:
Dana Bergman: Neat, timeless, elegant.
Erica Vassalotti: Easy, cool, sophisticated.
What have been the three biggest influences on your aesthetic in your life:
DB: My childhood best friend’s house, studying architecture, and living in Florence.
EV: Working for Anthropologie, Apprenticing for Athena Calderone of Eyeswoon, and meeting my business partner Dana.
How did you start your company, and/or what is your favorite thing about what you do:
DB: My favorite thing about what we do is the creative collaboration with Erica and seeing our vision and passion come to life for our client.
EV: I met my business partner, Dana, as a freelance stylist in 2019. We hit it off, recognized our mutual passion and rare complementary aesthetics. I joined her as an assistant in 2020. By 2022, we decided we wanted to build a beautiful brand together and officially become partners, starting Bergman Vass.
Do you have a mentor in your career, and if so, how have they helped to shape your trajectory:
Photo by Brian Wetzel
DB: Very early in my career, when I made the switch from architecture to interior design, I landed a job with a well-known design firm in Philadelphia, Floss Barber, Inc. The firm was working on a few cool hospitality and restaurant projects throughout the city, and there was an energy in the studio and with the clients that I had not seen in my prior jobs. I watched Floss, a smart single mother of two, “make the rain" with important clients, mostly men, wear fabulous designer clothing, and run her business with tons of energy. She was always so kind to me and allowed me to blossom. I did not realize at the time that I would be following in her footsteps one day, but I often looked back with admiration once I realized how difficult it was to raise children while building a business on my own.
EV: I have been fortunate to have a lot of incredible mentors in this industry, from C-level executives to Athena of Eyeswoon, all who have taught me something different, but I would be remiss if I didn’t attribute the greatest one to my business partner. With her architectural background and years of experience in the industry, she laid the foundation for Bergman Vass and introduced me to the dynamic world of interior design. The dream we are living right now and this beautiful brand is thanks to her years of hard work prior to the start of this partnership. Somehow, she was crazy enough to trust in the dreams and strategy of a 20-something, and it is now all materializing!
What does your home say about you:
DB: My home is calm, warm, and inviting, collected, personal, and comfortable.
EV: It is minimal, feminine, sophisticated, collected, sexy, with lots of ambient mood lighting and complementary to the view.
Where do you find inspiration:
DB: Travel, magazines, books, art, and nature.
EV: Travel, magazines, books, and of course, social media. However, I’ve started to find it in the cinema as well. I came up with an entire palette based on the interiors of a Parisian apartment I saw in a movie recently!
Who are your style icons:
DB: Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, Muccia Prada, and Audrey Hepburn.
EV: Tania Sarin, Victoria Beckham, and Olivia Palermo.
Photo by Brian Wetzel
What are your key ingredients for entertaining:
DB: Lighting, with a lot of candles, a thoughtfully curated array of homemade food, a fun cocktail to start the evening, and beautiful flowers.
EV: Mood lighting!! Wine, a good playlist, and a combination of sweet and savory foods. Always.
Do you collect anything:
DB: Handmade baskets, small pottery.
EV: Love collecting vintage candlestick holders and accessories in general!
Favorite Instagram accounts to follow for inspiration:
DB: @roseuniacke, @rosetarlowmelrosehouse, @axelvervoordt_co
EV: @milieumag, @augusta.hoffman, @colinking
What design “rule” do you always follow, and which is made to be broken:
DB: I always follow appropriate scale and proportion (especially furniture heights), and break the proximity of furnishings in a room….pieces can be closer together than the rules dictate.
EV: I always follow sconce heights being at eye level. I think it’s important for lighting to be captured in your sightline in a space. I don’t always follow furniture heights! Yes, it should be complementary, but one of my favorite pieces in my home is my vintage travertine tables that are 5” lower than my sofa arm. Keeping an open mind allows beautiful, unexpected moments to happen in a space!
Photo by Brian Wetzel
What are you working on right now:
EV: Projects at the Beach, Florida, Santa Fe, Chicago. We really are very fortunate to be experiencing a little bit of everything right now!
Wardrobe staples:
DB: Cashmere sweaters, wide leg jeans, Loewe Ballet Runners, full skirts.
EV: Cropped Blazer, Chunky Boots, Oversized Sweater, Prada Crossbody.
Photo by Brian Wetzel
Photo by Brian Wetzel
Favorite fabric/wallpaper:
DB: Rose Tarlow fabrics, Elizabeth Dow wallcoverings.
EV: Dedar Silks. I’m obsessed with the palettes.
Best interior advice you ever received:
DB: Draw in section and elevation.
EV: Design with respect to the environment.
Best career advice you ever received:
DB: Hire a great bookkeeper!
EV: Take up space!
Photo by Brian Wetzel
Types of home purchases you invest in, and save on:
DB: Invest in case goods, door hardware, and lighting. Save on upholstery and rugs.
EV: Invest in stone, vintage collectables, and art. Save on upholstery and rugs!
Your greatest extravagance:
DB: My kitchen at the beach.
EV: I want to say my art and vintage furniture collection, but I’m still working on it!!
Favorite places to shop for home:
DB: Vintage stores, Rose Tarlow Melrose House, Rose Uniacke.
EV: 1st Dibs, Gregorious Pineo, Zara Home, One of a kind vintage shops!
Most prized possession and why:
DB: Nowadays, my children and family bring me the most joy.
EV: I don’t know if I own this yet, but I do have a vintage chair in my apartment from the project that started Bergman Vass, which changed my career trajectory and life in more ways than one. It’s a daily reminder of where it all began.
Photo by Brian Wetzel
Your interiors motto:
DB: Make places that demand not only to be admired, but to be engaged with, enjoyed, and lived in. And to bring a sense of calm.
EV: Create interiors that reflect lives well lived.
Your life motto:
DB: Work hard, be kind, and bring beauty to everything you touch.
EV: Manifesting isn’t wishing and hoping. It’s doing and acting.
Advice for someone looking to define their own interior style:
EV: Identify the environments you feel most yourself, relaxed in, and grounded, attempt to define why you love them, find commonality, and start there!
Take Ten: My Favorite…
Food:
DB: Italian
EV: EV: Asian!
Drink:
DB: Cosmopolitan with citron vodka, super cold
EV: Dirty Martini
Film:
DB: I don’t know if it’s my favorite, but my most-watched is Bohemian Rhapsody
EV: The Pursuit of Happyness
Hotel:
DB: San Ysidro Ranch
EV: Reschio in Umbria, Italy, is on our bucket list.
City:
DB: Milan
EV: Santorini
Bedding:
DB: C&C Milano
EV: Anything relaxed and linen!
Tea or Coffee (and how do you take it):
DB: Coffee, heavy on the half and half, no sugar
EV: Peppermint Tea
Playlist:
DB: Always - Indigo Girls, lately - Billie Eilish
EV: Olivia Dean lately
Weekend Activity:
DB: Spending time at my beach house in Ventnor, cooking and seeing old friends
EV: Walks along Kelly Drive & trying new restaurants to scope out their interiors in Philly.
Design Book:
DB: Rose Tarlow’s The Private House
EV: Interiors Atelier AM