Planning For Adaptability in Design

Whether you’re an integrator, a designer or simply a label-defying creative, the experience is everything. Host Bryan Meszaros explores the story behind the exhibit to understand how a carefully crafted experience traps into the human experience to connect people to place.

 

Design is much more than static. In the 21st-century is all about experience and shaping environments. To discuss the evolution, Experience by Design host Bryan Meszaros spoke with John Lutz, Partner at Selbert Perkins Design.

Lutz always loved art and turned that into a career while studying at the University of Cincinnati. The program was unique, allowing him to alternate between internships and school. These internships allowed him to experience different types of firms. In one internship, he worked on the FedEx rebranding and was part of the team behind the iconic arrow logo. Those experiences helped him decide he wanted to work for Selbert Perkins because they focused on experiential branded environments. “The idea of shaping an entire environment was very appealing to me,” he said.

“You have to plan for adaptability in your design. Technology changes, and so do the expectations of those in the spaces.” – John Lutz

Since then, he’s worked on projects for some of the most well-known places, including the Dallas Cowboys stadium, McCarren airport in Las Vegas, and the St. Louis Cardinals ballpark.

Lutz was witness to the transformation of static design to digital being a part of it. “When digital came into the fold, it was like we can put a screen here,” he noted.

There was an opportunity for dynamic changing content, but not much else until the evolution of screens, ideas, and configurations. “Over time, we could integrate digital into the art. The digital actually became art,” Lutz added.

Much of the firm’s initial work was in wayfinding and gateways. Now, he’s involved in the two worlds merging, bringing imagination, a sculptural approach, and visual drama. Lutz also spoke about environments being timeless but components being changeable. “You have to plan for adaptability in your design. Technology changes, and so do the expectations of those in the spaces.”

Join host Bryan Meszaros on Experience by Design every other Wednesday as he explores the latest trends and solutions helping craft the world’s most intriguing experiences.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Higher Education
From Measuring Memory to Measuring Thinking: How Simulation-Based Learning Could Reshape Higher Education
June 15, 2026

As artificial intelligence continues reshaping the workforce, higher education faces growing pressure to demonstrate its value beyond content mastery. According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, employers expect 39% of workers’ core skills to change or become outdated by 2030, while 69% identify analytical thinking as the most essential workforce skill. As…

Read More
safer HVAC chemicals
The Future of the Trades Depends on Mentorship and Industry Veterans Passing Down the Craft
June 15, 2026

Across the United States, industries are grappling with a skilled labor shortage. According to industry research, millions of trade jobs are expected to go unfilled in the coming years as experienced workers retire faster than new ones enter the field. At the same time, trade school enrollment has steadily increased. The conversation around skilled trades—once…

Read More
outlet
From Power Shopping to Place-Making: Tanger’s Stephen Yalof on the New Outlet Experience
June 15, 2026

For decades, the outlet trip had a familiar rhythm: get in the car, drive beyond the city, hunt for deals and come home with bags full of discounted finds. But that old model is giving way to something more layered. As retailers reinvest in store experiences to give consumers more reasons to visit, outlet…

Read More
career
How Relationships Build a Career, Deepen Service and Define Purpose
June 10, 2026

In a workplace still shaped by hybrid schedules, remote communication and shifting expectations around professional growth, relationships have become more than a soft skill — they are a career advantage. Gallup’s latest workplace reporting shows that global employee engagement has fallen to 20%, reflecting a broader challenge for organizations trying to keep people connected,…

Read More