rj muna for kitchenaid

When KitchenAid was planning the launch of the industry’s first ever line of black stainless steel appliances, they knew they wanted to do something different, both for their brand, and for the segment as a whole. The KitchenAid campaigns from the past few years had been more lifestyle and kitchen focused.

Digitas was in charge of designing and implementing the campaign that would celebrate and take inspiration from that black stainless steel—a task that fell to VP Director of Art Production Lisa Oropallo, Creative Director Shelley Elkins, and Senior Art Director Morgan Weiner.

RJ Muna, known for his dramatic work with both automobiles and the human figure, was chosen to photograph the all-new collection, which is also KitchenAid’s first to be introduced globally.

“What drew me to RJ for this job was that this is a very specific product,” says Lisa. “He has such a beautiful way of working with cars and doing black on black that he seemed like the perfect photographer for the black stainless steel.”

KitchenAid Senior Brand Experience Manager Beth Robinson says black stainless steel beautifully showcases the brand’s latest design elements, including satin textured stainless steel handles, chrome inlaid frames and unique brand medallions. “Major appliances are the anchor pieces of a kitchen, and their color and design contribute largely to the overall look of the space,” she says.

“To highlight the new surface, we wanted something really sexy that would speak to the black,” says Morgan. “For obvious reasons, RJ’s work really stood out to us. His photography is truly professional and so stunning. We were honestly lucky to work with him.”

The print ads have been placed in a number of top food and design magazines including Food & Wine, Bon Appetit, House Beautiful, and Elle Décor, as well as on the web. Early figures show incredibly positive results across the category. “It’s breaking all of the benchmarks,” says Morgan.

The campaign will likely run into the second quarter of next year. A big thank you to Lisa, Shelley and Morgan for the fun project!