Designers from three current exhibitions at the National Building Museum discuss the creative and collaborative work that transforms ideas into compelling visitor experiences. The program examines how curatorial concepts are translated into immersive spaces through spatial storytelling, thoughtful use of materials, sensory engagement, and careful attention to visitor flow, as well as the fabrication and logistical challenges involved in exhibition design.
The evening features Traci Sym and Daniel Meyers of Plus And Greater Than, who designed Building Stories; Wendy Evans Joseph of Studio Joseph, the principal designer of Visible Vault: Open Collections Storage and the Visitor Center; and Suchi Reddy of Reddymade and Sarah Gephart of MGMT, who led the design for Coming Together: Reimagining America’s Downtowns. A conversation moderated by Cybelle Jones, CEO of the Society for Experiential Graphic Design (SEGD), will highlight the interdisciplinary dialogue that shapes the visitor experience from concept to installation.
Schedule:
6 pm Doors Open
6:30 pm Welcome & Presentations
7:35 pm Moderated Conversation and Q&A
8 pm Light Reception
8:30 pm Close
This program is made possible through a grant from the Apgar Fund for Excellence in the Built Environment.
About the Speakers
Traci Sym is an award-winning designer, performer, and co-founder of Plus And Greater Than, a design studio known for producing emotionally and intellectually provocative work in collaboration with institutional, educational, historical, and cultural clients and select brands. Their projects span experience design, graphic design across scales, exhibition design, interactive media, product design, and architecture. Traci is the Past President of the Board of Directors for the Society for Experiential Design, SEGD.
Daniel Meyers, RA is an Architect, Exhibition, and Industrial Designer, and co-founder of Plus And Greater Than. Myers began his career as a guitarmaker and musician. He has served as Creative Director in exhibition and digital experience design studios, and advertising agencies, and as an Architect Daniel has led interdisciplinary teams to create groundbreaking projects for leading cultural, commercial, and private clients across the world.
Sarah Gephart is the principal of MGMT. design, a women-owned graphic design studio based in New York that focuses on cultural, climate-focused, and socially engaged projects. Founded in 2003, MGMT. specializes in creating inclusive, cross-disciplinary work — developing identities, exhibition design, publications, books, infographics, and interactive experiences.
Suchi Reddy, FAIA, is an architect and interdisciplinary designer exploring neuroaesthetics—the biological underpinnings of our response to beauty, art, and design. Guided by her philosophy, “form follows feeling,” her work spans exhibit design, public art, cultural, healthcare, retail, commercial, and residential projects and designing for neurodiversity.
Wendy Evans Joseph, FAIA, is a visionary architect and founding partner of Studio Joseph. With a deep passion for art, culture, and public education, Joseph is a leading figure in museum design and exhibition installations. She has been honored with a Rome Prize in Architecture and holds the title of Academician of the National Academy of Design.
Cybelle Jones is CEO of the Society of Experiential Graphic Design (SEGD), leading the organization in championing experience design that connects people to place. SEGD is a nonprofit member community uniting designers of experiences around a shared commitment to education, innovation, and design excellence. Under Cybelle’s leadership, SEGD has strengthened its focus on design’s role in creating a more sustainable, equitable, and empathetic world.