What was it about a vintage Porsche that fascinated Joey Ruiter as a young man? Certainly, there was the glamour of its timeless form. He was also drawn to the relentless desire to take it apart and put it back together. And then there was the practicality of selling it at the end of summer and using the profit to pay college tuition.

Since then, Ruiter has been destined for fine machines and classic design. “When you take something apart, especially when you’re young, you assume you can put it back together, that you can do anything.”

Design education and life experiences tempered his youthful enthusiasm. “I quickly learned that criteria, limitations, are what drive good design,” he says. “When I’m constrained, I’m more creative. I want to see how well I can do something, despite the limitations.”

This has been the defining challenge for Ruiter as founder and principal designer of JRuiter + Studio in Grand Rapids, MI, USA. At the same time, he strives for simplicity. “I take complex problems and create the simplest solution possible. I like people to stand out more than the furniture.” This made Ruiter the perfect choice for a partnership with us in developing Intent furniture, a precursor to Canvas Office Landscape.

The constraints were significant: Give Intent a unifying aesthetic from private to open office, do it with a simple vocabulary, and make it accessible. The constraints drove Ruiter’s creativity.

Drawing on his experience in manufacturing and tooling, Ruiter met all the criteria while preparing some innovative features. One is the storage platform. It has a single rail for shelves, cabinets, and cubes that can be located anywhere along the rail and moved easily.

“People’s appreciation for good products certainly includes office furniture,” says Ruiter. “My goal is always to add visual and textural stimuli that appeal to the feeling of comfort and beauty.”

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