Principles of Interior Design

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 474.

The design in interiors is influenced by the related and overlapping professions of architecture, which deals with all aspects of buildings, including their basic structure from the foundation up, and industrial design, which deals with the design of factory-made products, such as appliances and vehicles; and by various specialized fields, such as furniture design and textile design. The interior designer is concerned with the planning and layout of interior spaces not already fixed by the architect, the selection of furniture and other appointments, and the arrangement of the lighting, colors, and rugs or carpets all of which are orchestrated to create a space that will be useful, pleasing, and comfortable. In the case of a private home or apartment, this work often is done by the actual occupant, although a professional designer may be consulted or entrusted with the entire job. Almost all buildings used by a wider public including the interiors of offices, hotels, hospitals, restaurants, and similar structures are handled by an interior designer with college-level or art-school training and with substantial practical experience.

Although some architects design the interiors of their buildings, more commonly the architect plans a building shell and leaves the interior details to be determined later. This procedure almost invariably is followed in constructing apartment buildings, which will be inhabited by tenants with varying tastes and needs, and office buildings, whose floors normally are open spaces that will be divided into rooms and planned in detail to suit different occupants. Ideally, the interior designer will consult with the architect while a building is still in the planning stage, so that the basic layout and the location of stairs, elevators, and plumbing can be arrived at jointly. In buildings with repeated standard elements, interior-design work often comes first.

In the case of an already existing building, the interior designer must be aware of the problems that may arise in moving doors, walls, or stairs and must understand the relation of design work to the plumbing, electrical, heating, and air-conditioning systems. Some types of interior-design assignments health-care facilities and aircraft interiors, for example are so specialized as to require designers or design firms that concentrate solely or chiefly on their execution.

1. What is the design in interiors influenced by?
2. What is the interior designer concerned with?
3. Does the architect leave the interior details to be determined later?
4. Why should the interior designer consult with the architect while a building is still in the planning stage?
5. What problems must the interior designer be aware of in the case of an already existing building?