Goal: Create an immersive environment that celebrates the culinary arts, inspires students,
and brings the possibilities of a culinary education to life.
Scope: Signage & Experiential Graphics · Artwork · Digital Media
Timeframe: 16 months
Square Footage: 78,400
For Oakland Community College’s new Culinary Studies Institute in downtown Royal Oak, Ideation Orange developed an experiential design program that brings the energy, craft and creativity of the culinary world into the built environment. Throughout the three-story facility, the experience helps prospective students see the possibilities of a culinary education, celebrates the chefs and history of the program, introduces a wide range of career paths, and creates an environment that encourages current students as they develop their skills.
The program combines dimensional and illuminated graphics, photography, environmental storytelling, signage and wayfinding, custom digital media, and art concepts. A monumental video display features a custom motion-graphic film exploring Food as Art, while corridors and gathering spaces use imagery, typography and dimensional elements to make the work and possibilities of the culinary profession visible.
