Together with Los Angeles design firm A3LA, we were contracted to design two Au Bon Pain stores in Logan Airport—one larger store in the Main Hall and a smaller store past security in the departure area of the terminal. The concept of “real food” established a transformation of given materials to “real materials”—matter instead of surface. Signage is literally fused with an open structural canopy which defines and is defined by the given parcels of space. The canopy splits to define the internal programmatic parts—splitting the dining from the food preparation/purchase area, directing the flow of the customer and operator.

The branding symbol of the sunflower, conveying “fresh,” “bright,” and “life” served as the inspiration of the design. The canopy projects a pattern onto the opposing surfaces of the space—as it would cast its shadow from the sun. This has the effect of making Au Bon Pain a sunny spot within an otherwise gray terminal.