Event Setups

Attendees could also experience talks from an open-air installation dubbed the “Katerra Simulcast Cinema,” a wooden structure created by former TED speaker Michael Green and a student architecture team studying sustainable design.

TED curator Chris Anderson interviewed psychologist Steven Pinker during the opening session titled "Doom. Gloom. Outrage. Uproar."

The raw venue was transformed with colorful, modern furniture that created common space for guests to interact, relax, and get work done. Bright pink wrapping was used to separate the different areas of the event, and T-Mobile offered a spot for charging phones.

One of three stage areas—dubbed Hustle Hall—was designed as a theater in the round, allowing guests to get closer to the speakers. In the front row were couches and lounge chairs. "It’s really inviting; people wanted to hang out there for hours," said Balestrieri.

The main speaker area—a.k.a. the Baller Room—had a colorful stage designed with architectural elements. As the only room to hold all 850 attendees, organizers added several video screens so everyone had a good view.

The third stage area, dubbed the Start-Up Studio, hosted a series of intensive workshops with comfortable seating. In the studio, sponsor Google Chromebook led sessions on ways its new technology can benefit small businesses, and signage on the walls discussed gender inequality in the start-up community.

Google Chromebook also invited women to get hands-on with its products in a booth area.

Actress Zoey Deutch chatted with Marley Diaz, founder of #1000BlackGirlBooks, as well as young activists Madison Kimrey and Naomi Wadler.

Inside the tented dining space, sections of round and rectangular dining tables were decorated in four distinct springtime shades—sunshine yellow, robin’s egg blue, rich teal, and cherry blossom pink.

In addition to wooden slat chairs, some dining setups included luxe upholstered sofas.

Long, communal tables and lounge-like configurations provided more relaxed seating on the upper level. For centerpieces, the designer incorporated square-shaped canopies, illuminated by candles that hung from the leaves in glass cylinders. Gift bags from sponsor Cartier were placed on guest's seats prior to the start of the event.

For the Oh Joy for Target launch party at a private residence in Beverly Hills earlier this year, Caravents turned patterns from the entertaining and party product collection into vinyl appliqués. The team applied them to the backs of ghost chairs to add on-brand pops of color to the event.