Eleanor Kahn is a Chicago-based interdisciplinary artist, with a focus on scenic and installation design. Her work is centered around the idea that the where, when, and how we receive information is as important as what that information is; context is everything.  By creating and shaping the environment, Eleanor believes that design can directly affect how people view and experience the world. 

Kahn’s work is rooted in story. To translate this story into experiential space, she approaches all her work with both a micro and macro lens. With a macro lens, she can establish larger relationships and connections that begin from the moment an audience crosses a doorway, or catches a glimpse of color off in the distance, through the final moment of interaction. The micro lens comes with her detail-oriented, hands-on method of practice. She has often painted, been the details designer, and fabricated alongside the bigger picture design work. Her multi-viewed approach results in rich, dynamic designs that cross disciplines and create exciting, engaging spaces for audiences of all kinds.

Eleanor received her Bachelor of Architecture degree from Iowa State University with a second major in performing arts. She then went on to receive her Master’s in Scenic Design from Boston University. In 2012, after graduating BU, she moved to Chicago. While her work was founded in theater design, she continues to expand the types of environments in which she creates and pushes the boundaries of traditional storytelling.

Recent Honors Include:

• First Artist-in-Residence in Des Moines, IA

• Selected to design + fabricate Chicago’s 2019 Year of Chicago Theatre installation in Millennium Park in Cloud Gate Park

• Iowa State University’s 2019 Theatre Alumni of the Year

• 2018 Equity Jeff Award for Artistic Specialization for her set dressing + properties design for Southern Gothic – the first props nominee to ever win the award

For more regular updates, check out my instagram

@eleanorkahndesign