The Sea Ranch: Architecture, Environment, and Idealism

The Sea Ranch: Architecture, Environment, and Idealism illuminates these ideals through a wide array of drawings, photographs, models, and an ambitious 1:1 scale reproduction of Unit 9 from the first condominium constructed on the site.

The Challenge

The primary design challenge for this exhibition was creating a varied and engaging experience within the small footprint of the gallery.

It was imperative vistors be drawn into the gallery from down a long hallway into a large scale reproduction inside the gallery. The exhibition had over 100 objects so balancing enough wall space with large photo-murals was also a challenge. A short documentary is also screened within the 1:1 scale reproduction so the team needed to ensure seating was plentiful.

Project Vision

The flow of the exhibition was largely determined by the placement of the reproduction of Unit 9, and based on that we determined which faces of it could be used to also hang art, photography, and objects.

The vitrine and pedestal design work to tie the gallery aesthetic together by utilizing a diagonal connector that mimics the angles seen in the Sea Ranch architecture.

Design & Execution

Bold and bright supergraphics are a large part of the identity of The Sea Ranch and were originally designed by Barbara Stauffacher Solomon, who was commissioned to execute her signature supergraphics at the entrance and exit of the exhibition to appropriately set the tone.

Large photo blowups were used to show key architectural details as well as transport the visitor to the cliffs of the Pacific while sitting inside the reproduction of Unit 9.

The first photo-mural of The Sea Ranch marker building works in concert with the red and white supergraphics to draw visitors down the hallway and into the gallery. The typography of the exhibition title is drawn directly from the typography used at The Sea Ranch which is visible throughout the exhibition. The second photo-mural mimics the actual view of the Pacific Ocean that is visible from the “window seat” of Unit 9. Barbara Stauffacher Solomon’s red and white supergraphics also bookend the exhibition, easily indicating the flow through the gallery.

The exhibition received considerable and positive press coverage. The 1:1 scale reproduction was a first for the institution and helped to give visitors a sense of place that would not have been possible otherwise. It added to the museum’s library of solutions for how to approach design of Architecture + Design exhibitions, whose concepts and objects are different from the others shown within the museum.