AIGA Design Archives

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Design Category
Promotional design and advertising, 2004
Design firm
BBK Studio (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Collection
(2005) AIGA 365: 26

Description

Herman Miller for the Home launched a campaign to promote authentic furniture designs to stave off the increasing prevalence of knock-offs, and wanted a website to help carry the message. The campaign targeted furniture buyers who may not know the difference.
We recommended developing a site that would outlive the campaign but continue to promote its ideals by educating potential customers about the evolution and history of mid-century American modernism. Customers who had a deeper understanding of the people and events related to these original designs would place a higher value on authenticity.
Our design solution balanced the 1950s graphic aesthetic from the era with contemporary immersive web paradigms. The site was designed with a flexible, nonlinear navigation scheme that emphasizes the relationship between things and encourages browsing. We planned for and have launched several updates to the site, creating periodic promotional opportunities. The site has grown in content and functionality as planned, and the Discovering Design identity has grown to become a broader campaign for Herman Miller for the Home retailers. The site continues to increase its traffic and readership, continuing to position Herman Miller as an integral expert in American modernism.

Credits
Creative director: Kevin Budelmann
Art director: Alison Popp
Designers: Kevin Budelmann, Alison Popp
Developers: Scott Krieger, John Winkelman
Photography: Herman Miller archives
Production director: Alison Popp
Production artist: Marie-Claire Camp
Picture editor: Alison Popp
Editor: Clark Malcolm
Writer: Clark Malcolm
Copywriter: Clark Malcolm
Content strategist: Clark Malcolm
Project manager: Dianne Garone
Client: Herman Miller
Juror Notes

http://www2.hermanmiller.com/discoveringdesign/