How is the St. Louis Arch connected to Severance's Lumon Industries? Details revealed 

Reportedly, Apple TV's new popular show Severance has some possible ties with the St. Louis Gateway Arch, which is often called the gateway to the West. The St. Louis Gateway Arch is a tall gateway arch in Missouri, United States. It is one of the tallest structures that common people can access, built of stainless steel.

Severance showcases a surgical process that divides one body of the characters into two with different memories and experiences. Outtie, which is the personal self outside the office structure, and Innie, which remains inside the workspace. Both selves share no connection.

The Lumon building shares a stark resemblance with the work of American architect Eero Saarinen, who designed the Gateway Arch. Read on to learn more about the building and what its architecture speaks about the Lumon and its larger agenda.

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How is the St. Louis Arch connected to Lumon Industries in Severance?

The real building where all the scenes of Lumon are shot is in Holmdel, New Jersey, and is open for the common people to visit, according to reports. The architecture of Lumon Industries as shown in Severance, however, shares striking similarities with the real-life work of Eero Saarinen. The Bell Labs Holmdel building and the gateway arch are some of his renowned works.

Lumon portrays some sweeping and curved structures that depict isolation and control. The steel and glass exteriors make it more futuristic and impersonal, devoid of warmth. While its sleek and minimalistic design makes it look classy but mechanical. It tempts the employees but also seems out of their reach.

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What does the Saarinen style architecture suggest about Lumon in Severance?

It depicts isolation from the outside world as their employees are also severed and don't know anything about their personal grief, struggles, etc. They have built a new world in their workspace that their Outtie is unaware of. Further in the series, this creates conflict when it pits the characters Outtie and Innie against each other.

The architecture also suggests that Lumon's corporate identity is tied to the real world of power and surveillance. Saarinen’s buildings often feature large, open areas with high ceilings, wide hallways, and glass-walled offices. This creates a false sense of openness while maintaining constant visibility, a technique also seen in prisons and surveillance-heavy institutions.

The minimalist designs are often dehumanizing and mechanical. The blank white walls in which we see Mark running panic-stricken in the Severance trailer is also an example of Saarinen's minimalist designs. The designs in Lumon's building are identical to disorient employees from the right direction.

Most of the Saarinen buildings are designed with limited entry and exit points. Even in Lumon, the employees cannot leave or enter certain areas without permission. Therefore, by the end of season 2, where Mark's Innie returns to Helly, leaving Gemma alone, the viewers are at a cliffhanger as they wonder if she will be able to get out of Lumon successfully after being freed from the Cold Harbor room.