Leon Ransmeier

Leon Ransmeier, the new head of the Architecture and Design department and faculty of the Industrial Design program at Cranbrook Academy of Art, gained much of the rich expertise he brings to the Bloomfield Hills campus through life experience and running a professional practice.

Ransmeier explained that his creativity was sparked from an early age: “My dad is a ceramic artist, and I grew up in his studio.”

The designer, editor and entrepreneur has experienced life in many places.

He was born in upstate New York and grew up in Asheville, N.C., where he graduated from high school. For college, he moved to Providence, R.I., to attend Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and earned a BFA in furniture design – “a hands-on craft that gave me a strong foundation” – with a strong interest in architecture and industrial design. He has also lived in Sante Fe, N.M., the Netherlands, and New York City.

“My freshman year at RISD I intended to study architecture but after placing out of a required history class, I took a history of industrial design class to fill in and became enthralled – it grabbed me,” he described.

For nearly 18 years, Ransmeier called New York City home, which is where he launched his industrial design company, Ransmeier, Inc., in 2010. His company has collaborated with celebrated brands such as Droog, HAY, Herman Miller, Maharam and Mattiazzi.

While in New York, he also worked collaboratively on a book about the vibrant history of Herman Miller which was published in 2019. The book, Herman Miller: A Way of Living, focuses on the story of the renowned Zeeland, Michigan-based furniture company known for its significant role as a pioneer in American modernism and the innovative furniture designs that emerged in the mid-20th century.

Ransmeier’s contribution to the book focused on editorial, organization and image research, which brought him to The Henry Ford in Dearborn to tap the museum’s extensive archives that hold a significant collection of Herman Miller-related objects and archival materials.

He noted there is also a strong connection between Herman Miller and Cranbrook Academy of Art. Herman Miller is best known for producing one of the most significant furniture designs of the 20th century – the iconic Eames Chair and Ottoman, which was created by legendary industrial designers Charles Eames and Ray Kaiser Eames, who met at Cranbrook in 1940.

Ransmeier’s new role is not his first experience at Cranbrook as he worked with his Designer-in-Residence predecessor on a semester-long design workshop in 2009, which culminated in the presentation of final designs in New York.

While it’s been an exceptionally busy summer with his move to campus and preparation for the fall semester, Ransmeier plans to “bring fresh energy and growth to the master’s level program by raising public awareness through international collaborations with museums and brands and by exposing students to a broad range of international artists, educators, curators, designers and the like.”

He added, “For me, this position is about creating opportunities to expose students to a myriad of paths that can be available to them and to support the next generation of designers as they pursue creative professions in this changing world.”

Aside from his career, Ransmeier is married with a two-and-a-half year old daughter and an English Setter. His wife grew up in Michigan and attended the University of Michigan and his sister lives in Kalamazoo, so this position comes with the perk of instate family connections. When he has time, he enjoys “skiing in deep powder.”

Through Ransmeier’s years of experience in the creative business world, he offers this advice to aspiring designers and creatives: “Work hard, be prepared to fail and then keep working.”

Story: Tracy Donohue

Photo: Laurie Tennent