Interior design is a visual art. Interior design is a technical art. Interior design is a practical art. The challenge of interior design education is to address the artistic, intellectual, technical and practical considerations necessary to provide students with a stable base upon which to begin to practice the art of interior design. If this foundation incorporates awareness of the total context out of which design emerges and of which it is a part, the student will have been prepared to continue to develop as an artist and practitioner in the years to come.
The foundation of undergraduate study in interior design is almost identical with that of other disciplines in the visual arts; the study of the elements of two-dimensional and three- dimensional design, drawing, and color. As the student becomes more able to understand abstract design principles, design concepts are introduced, enabling the student to begin to apply abstract principles to concrete problems.
The creative aspects of interior design are part of an ongoing dialogue with culture. It is by attending college that students gain insight into the historical development of interior design, furniture, decorative objects, and the interior architectural features of the built environment. Together with the history of art and architecture, these formal investigations into the past inform the design of today, which then comments on our own time.
The social sciences have a profound influence on design. The individual needs, values, behavior patterns, perceptions, and responses of people are considered the basis on which to create environments for living and working. Students of design should be familiar with many aspects of psychology and sociology and develop skills for gathering and organizing information related to the use of interior environments.
The design process requires more than aesthetic and social decisions. Specialized knowledge of structural principles, details and drawing, programming, building codes, energy conservation, safety regulations, lighting materials, and methods of construction are all part of the working vocabulary of today’s interior designer.
The curriculum at Design Institute is organized to introduce these concepts in logical sequence, continually layering and overlapping basic design principles and concepts, as their levels of complexity increase; building in the student the ability to comprehend new information by relating it to an existing framework that is already understood.
Business is one of the determining factors in the success of interior designers. Business practices such as contracts, record-keeping, job-cost control, fees, compensation, billing, legal issues, and professional ethics will be introduced within the curriculum.
Interior Design is a field of change. New trends and technologies, new theories and ways of practice are an essential part of the designer’s life. The designer whose education has provided a firm ground will be able to evaluate the relative importance of new trends and technologies and their validity to the practice of interior design.
In all fields, school is just the beginning. The education of an interior designer is a lifelong process. Professional maturation will only come through continued artistic, intellectual and technical development. What a good education provides is the map and the guidebook: figuring out where you want to go, all the ways of getting there, and what to do when you arrive.