RJE Business Interiors

Design matters. Just ask Denny Sponsel, president and owner of RJE Business Interiors. The 13-year-old company provides consultations, design services, furniture expertise, and exemplary customer service to businesses throughout Indiana and beyond.

Sponsel and his staff take design and space planning very seriously.

“Color, texture, light, and how they are applied in a space can significantly affect and inspire those using the space,” Sponsel said.

Through philanthropy, RJE is providing design input and furniture for Herron’s new Think It Make It Lab—where art, design, and technology intersect. The lab is adjacent to the Basile Center for Art, Design, and Public Life in Eskenazi Hall. This proximity will accelerate exploration of digital production techniques, rapid prototyping, and people-centered design research. It will also provide a convenient place for students to create work and engage with community partners.

“Space can dictate behavior. It makes people feel and act in a certain way,” Sponsel said. “I am pleased to be a part of this initiative because I have witnessed firsthand how art and design students see the world differently than others. I believe our world greatly benefits because of this difference.

“The Think It Make It Lab will help develop new collaborations across the IU Indianapolis campus and will enhance the collaborations that are already in place. I appreciate how creativity and visionary thinking are encouraged at Herron. It’s the unpredictability of not knowing, exploring, experimenting and creating that always leaves me pleasantly surprised.”

Sponsel appreciates the special skills Herron alumni, such as Sam Julka (M.F.A. in Visual Communications Design, 2012), bring to the workplace. “Sam worked at RJE for five years as a designer,” he said. “She did an outstanding job; however we both knew her talents were being underutilized.” Julka resigned to enroll in Herron’s Visual Communication Design graduate program, which focuses on design thinking and people-centered design.

Her thesis examined “Serendipity Encounters in the Workplace,” using RJE as a model. She founded her own firm, DORIS—Design Oriented Research for Impactful Solutions—a business that applies people-centered design in the workplace. Julka’s clients include the Indianapolis Children’s Museum, Techpoint and the YMCA.

Sponsel and Julka continue to work together through their respective businesses.

“I believe Sam’s personality, character and the skills she learned at Herron set her apart from traditional designers,” said Sponsel. “She brings a unique value to the client.” Julka’s business is already growing. She recently hired Herron alumna Holly Kanning (B.F.A. in Visual Communication Design, 2014).

Herron’s Dean Emerita Valerie Eickmeier said, “We are excited at the prospect of providing the Think It Make It Lab as a collaborative space for research and experimentation. We are especially grateful to Denny and his team at RJE for providing resources to give our students an innovative environment that will help them succeed in reaching their educational and artistic goals. Design is a natural link between our organizations.”

There are still plenty of exciting opportunities to support Herron and the Think It Make It Lab through philanthropy. To learn more, please contact Kim Hodges, Office of Development, at 317-278-9472 or kshodges@iu.edu.