Whisky Meets Art: Maia Lehr-Sacks & The Balvenie Illuminate Craft Through Light

In a refined union of heritage and contemporary creation, The Balvenie has partnered with sculptural paper artist Maia Lehr-Sacks to reveal a series of bespoke window installations at key Norman Goodfellows outlets. This marks the first South African expression of The Makers Project, a global campaign honouring modern creatives who, like The Balvenie, bring deep intention, skill, and patience to their craft.

A Dialogue Between Two Craft Philosophies

The Balvenie’s Five Rare Crafts—home-grown barley, an owned cooperage, working floor malting, copper stills, and the guidance of a single Malt Master—remain the foundation of its distinctive character. Rather than directly recreating these traditions, Lehr-Sacks reinterpreted the philosophy by shaping her own Five Pillars of Craft: process, material, memory & intention, repetition, and transformation.

“Each fold holds memory. Each crease is deliberate. The hours of folding, the physical strain, and the quiet repetition all live inside the work. That’s the craft. That’s the soul of it.”

Lehr-Sacks reflects

Her installation features pleated paper sculptures—suspended, rhythmic forms that play with light and shadow in constant motion. This interplay captures the shared duality of both art and whisky: fragility balanced by discipline, tradition enlivened by transformation.

The Art of Display, The Poetry of Precision

Designed with sensitivity to natural light, Lehr-Sacks’ work changes throughout the day.

“Paper doesn’t just sit in space—it responds to it. Light becomes a collaborator. Shadow becomes the storyteller,”.

she explains

This philosophy echoes The Balvenie’s own devotion to imperfection, intimacy, and human touch. From copper stills to on-site coopers, its whisky-making remains deeply rooted in craft and time-honoured skills.

A Preview of the Makers Journey

The Norman Goodfellows displays are only the beginning. Over the coming months, The Balvenie will collaborate with South African makers across culinary and visual disciplines, inviting them to define their own five pillars of craft—expressions of patience, character, and passion.

This initiative doesn’t reinterpret The Balvenie’s Five Rare Crafts, but rather celebrates the parallel purpose of modern creators who find meaning in process and precision.

Experience the Installations

You can visit the bespoke paper art displays at the following Norman Goodfellows locations:

• Fourways
• Kyalami
• Melrose Arch