OMG. It (Usually!) Looks Just Like the Rendering: New Yorkers for Children

It's very meaningful for us to create alongside our partners at not-for-profit organizations. Our décor is not about "decoration." Rather, we infuse a room with a conceptual idea.
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When we finally get to event day, stand back, and take in what we've created, we are always surprised and delighted by how closely the installation resembles the initial renderings we've created for our clients. Case in point, we have partnered with the wonderful organization, New Yorkers for Children. For many years now, their fall gala is one of the most chic and anticipated social events of the season, and our drawings have consistently been a precursor to reality in three dimensions. We are so excited for their gala TONIGHT!

Early on in the design and ideation process, we meet with the gala chairs and brainstorm a conceptual direction that we can all galvanize around. Our décor is not about "decoration," even though it does, technically, decorate the room. Rather, we infuse a room with a conceptual idea. In the case of New Yorkers, we created a tag line this year: LAUNCH A STAR, and implicit in this directive is the romance and beauty of a starry night, but also the real reason why the most chic crowd in New York has come together in the first place: To make the dreams of a higher education a reality for foster children.

As we execute the carefully conceived plans for this year's gala, I can't help but look back on New Yorkers' galas of the recent past. It's fun to share both the renderings and the actual event photos from those evenings.

2011-09-19-NYFC_Entryway_Back_vs02.jpgThousands of post-it notes became a decorative building block to spell out the evening's theme, MAKE IT HAPPEN, while conceptually referencing personal to-do lists that lead to significant accomplishment.

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2011-09-19-NYFC_Entry_vs08.jpgThe archetypal black and white marbled composition book becomes the evening's symbolic hero, trumpeting the importance of education in grand proportions.

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It's very meaningful for us to create alongside our partners at not-for-profit organizations. Some people say that it is hard to design by committee, but frankly, we LOVE the collaborative process. It pushes us to creatively break new ground all the time, and I am thrilled to have reached a time period where folks embrace the power of design, requiring it to be both beautiful AND a metaphor for real meaning. It is THAT desire for conceptual meaning that keeps me endlessly inspired, that drives us to push these installations into the realm of art. A big congratulations to my friends at New Yorkers for Children. Thank you for your vision and partnership. I am so proud of the work we have done TOGETHER over all these years.

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