Gianfranco Zaccai: Food and Design
For designer Gianfranco Zaccai, the parallels between food and design run deep. But foremost, he recognizes that, “A great meal is not just great food, but is great companionship. A great piece of design is something that allows people to be together.”
Zaccai’s desire to bring people together is well suited for healthcare, where patients, family members, caregivers, and support staff often share space. This close proximity demands a careful balance of needs—a fact not lost on Zaccai when he developed Compass, a healthcare furniture system for patient rooms, exam rooms, and other clinical spaces. Wanting to design a better experience for everyone, Zaccai and Herman Miller researchers spent a lot of time talking with people—more than 550, actually. With each person helping to ensure that Compass got the balance just right.
The resulting design has won multiple awards. And it demonstrates that good design, like good food, can bring people together.
Check out Gianfranco Zaccai’s contribution to Why Design, a new video series featuring stories from Herman Miller’s creative network. There are eight videos in total, with a new one debuting every Monday. Next week is Studio 7.5.