A Design Manifesto Fuels Innovation and Award-Winning Outcomes
Sector: Design and Architecture, Non-Profit Company: International Interior Design Association Discipline: Branding, Design Systems & Strategy, Environmental, Print Design, Advertising & Marketing, Digital, Wayfinding
Each year, NeoCon, one of the largest and most influential commercial design events in North America, convenes 500 leading companies and more than 50,000 design professionals at Chicago’s Merchandise Mart—serving as the commercial design industry’s premier platform for launching new ideas, products, and conversations that shape the built environment.
The International Interior Design Association’s role there is more than just attendance or sponsoring — the organization curates and drives key parts of the conference experience, helping set design discourse, promote innovation, and elevate emerging talent.
Anchored in Executive Vice President and CEO Cheryl S. Durst’s design manifesto, this became the strategic foundation for the design direction for the event.
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Design is personal. not political. design dignifies. it does not discriminate. design provides and provokes. it has no prejudice. design heals the heart, replenishes the soul, ignites the mind. design civilizes, not demonizes. design excites and exalts. it never excludes. design educates. it does not repudiate. design has empathy not antipathy. design is culture. design is craft. design is art. design is science. design is history. design is love. design speaks. design listens. design is everywhere. we are design.
Cheryl S. Durst, Hon. FIIDA
IIDA
Executive Vice President and CEO
Our StoryEach word from the manifesto was paired with a color selected for its emotional or historical resonance, creating a flexible design language that could scale across touchpoints.
Helvetica—a typeface synonymous with clarity, discipline, and modernist intent—was selected to reinforce the manifesto’s purpose.
From keynotes, educational content, competitions, events, and major presentations that shape the event’s design direction, each touchpoint was considered. From shirts that featured the entire statement to blown out letterforms used as graphic backgrounds, each element was created to work on its own and as part of a larger system.
