THE ZEN OF CREATIVITY

"Experience design" pioneer
Jody Levy breathes imagination
into environments and events.

BY SHARON LUCKERMAN

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANGIE BAAN

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"We breathe life into environments and events and bring is
stories alive," says "experience designer" Jody Levy.

2 2 •

JANI'ARY 2005 • JNPLATINUM

"We breathe life into environ-
o you're a Toyota execu-
ments and events and bring prod-
tive who wants a special
ucts, stories alive," says Levy, who
company to launch your
explains the name o2: "It's oxygen
new concept car at the 2005 North
— creative breath."
American International Auto
Warm, and quick with heady
Show. Whom do you turn to?
ideas, Levy works in a comfort-
Maybe you own an exciting
able bright white space, a
new hotel in L.A., but guests
"playpen" for 10 people that
complain your elevators are too
includes a circular open idea-
slow. Whom do you call to solve
room; three see-through glass
the problem creatively when you
offices and futuristic pods; and
can't change the elevator's speed?
workstations made of aluminum
Or perhaps you're an exec at J.
and Lycra-material, which exists
Walter Thompson planning the
only at o2 and the Guggenheim
kickoff for the Breast Cancer
Museum in New York.
Awareness campaign in New York
No one has a title at o2, she
City's Time Square. Whom do you
choose to help dream
up a unique multi-
media display that
touches people's
hearts and minds?
These companies
and others turned to
"o2 creative solutions"
— an experience
design firm in Royal
Oak with an office in
Venice, Calif.
"We're pioneering
experience design,"
says Jody Levy, 25, of Futuristic workstations at o2's Royal Oak offices.
Birmingham, who
says. It's not a traditional design
joined o2 founder Brian Hords
firm. People do many things.
three years ago at the company's
Some days she produces; others,
inception. By integrating art,
she manages or is a creative direc-
fashion and technology, she says,
tor. "We're computer scientists,
o2 pushes the boundary of
psychologists, writers, dancers."
interactive design.
Founder Hords says he liked
Check out its media launch of
both Levy's classical art training
the new cars by Lexus and Toyota
and her experience doing charity
at the Detroit auto show with assis-
events. A Cranbrook Educational
tance from the George P. Johnson
Community graduate in Bloomfield
Company of Auburn Hills.
Hills, Levy soaked up influences of
Last year's launch of the Lexus
preeminent designers Ray Eames,
LF-C concept car in New York
Eliel Saarinen and Harry Bertoia.
City got great news media cover-
Earning her bachelor of fine arts at
age because o2 brought the audi-
the School of the Art Institute of
ence into the experience of driv-
Chicago, she says, "I became really
ing a convertible by using video,
focused on how to get people
animated architecture, music and
involved in environments, like art
hanging paper elements.

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