Overview

A promotional brochure and in-store exhibition for Design Within Reach, celebrating Eero Saarinen's N°71 Executive Armchair (1950) and the architect behind it.

Process

After researching Saarinen's architecture and furniture I was able to sum up his style as flowy, ergonomic and futuristic. The die-cut on the cover reads as the numerals "71," echoes his arches (the Gateway Arch, the TWA Flight Center), and repeats the opening that earned the chair Knoll's nickname, "the chair with the hole in the back." The cut also works as a window, revealing Saarinen and then the chair as the brochure unfolds. The exhibition grew from three concepts into an arched room that works as the brochure at full scale.

Outcome

A die-cut brochure with a Design Within Reach envelope lined with the upholstery dot pattern, and a scale exhibition maquette.