Campos, I. and Bernardo, L., 2020. Architecture and Steel. ‘Reflection and Analysis on the Use of Steel Structures (in Sight) as a Concept in the History of Architecture’. Designs, 4(3), p.30.
This article looks at the connection between architectural conception and the use of steel structures. It looks at several important architect of the 20th century and their implementation of steel in modern architecture. Throughout the article it touches on the need to create effective housing for the masses. The paper tries to explore how architects might create the same effect of a bespoke property using flexible interiors when applied to building in quantity. This idea of flexible living is particularly poignant in the current climate with people needing to make their homes an office, school and gym all at once. It presents ideas that have been explored for the better part of a century with the need to apply it now, making it an extremely relevant text. For me this could open up avenues of exploration of modular housing and the impact of material on the capability of a design.
Larson, K., Intille, S., McLeish, T., Beaudin, J. and Williams, R., 2004. ‘Open Source Building — Reinventing Places of Living’. BT Technology Journal, 22(4), pp.187-200.
This paper looks at an alternative model for building our houses, putting the control of the design in the hands of the customer. It looks at modular home design and the possibility to switch and upgrade elements at any given time. It also explores the methods in which a consumer may go about designing their home. This seems to be an idea of the future with ultimate flexibility in the hands of the consumer. It will take a significant societal change for people to stray from conventional methods, a change we have not seen in the 16 years since the paper was written. Despite its age these ideas are still interesting today and could be implemented more effectively in 2020 than they could have been in 2004. However, without legislation for liability and a strong economic plan for each party in the design chain, it does not seem viable.
Celadyn, M., 2018. ‘Environmental Activation of Inner Space Components in Sustainable Interior Design’. Sustainability, 10(6), p.1945.
This paper looks at identifying sustainable goals for interior design and creating a framework that shows the impact of interior design on built environment. It also explores the indoor environment quality looking at elements such as air quality, daylighting, and acoustics. A key thing that I have taken away from this paper is that there is a lot more to sustainability than what you can see in a design. Things like systems communication and social impact are what you might call a secondary step of sustainability but are none the less important. When implementing this in my work I will look to take more of a multi-faceted approach looking to intertwine disciplines to make informed decisions on design.
Altomonte, S., 2009. ‘Environmental Education for Sustainable Architecture’. Review of European Studies, 1(2), pp.12-21.
Sustainability has been a buzzword for decades now and this paper focuses on how sustainability is to be implemented in education. Altomonte suggests that the days of sustainability being a specialist subject are gone. Sustainability must be designed into the building rather than added to the building by a specialist engineer. This requires not only educating those currently in practice but also those that are in education. Sustainability must be a key element in the curriculum for anyone in the field of architectural design. I think that due to the age of this paper it is less relevant, but only because the suggestions made by the paper have been implemented. It is an issue of growing importance and has hence seen its prevalence. In my own work I will strive for sustainability throughout both education and practice but using it without loss of creativity will be the greater goal.
Cucuzzella, C., 2019. ‘The normative turn in environmental architecture’. Journal of Cleaner Production, 219(SI: Facilitating, envisioning and implementing sustainable development with creative approaches), pp.552-565.
Cucuzzella explores the way in which our approach towards environmental architecture has changed over time. Moving from innovation and experimentation in the mid 20th century to a more normative approach of environmental management in the 21st century. The paper looks at four design competitions, comparing the briefs and the entries for each of them. The results showed a growth in normative approaches in more recent competitions. I believe this is to be expected, as we become more familiar with a topic the opportunity to be innovative with it decreases as the refinement and specialism becomes more important. Although designing the next ground-breaking innovation is always the goal as a designer, it is also important to just do the basics well. In my work, designing in a way that captivates viewers whilst managing environmental issues is still good design, it is just a step on a longer path to ground-breaking innovation.
El-Zeiny, R., 2012. ‘Biomimicry as a Problem Solving Methodology in Interior Architecture’. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 50(SI: AcE-Bs 2012), pp.502-512.
El-Zeiny identifies that biomimetics is more than just the appearance and requires a deeper understanding of form and function and their relationship in nature. The paper produces a framework with two approaches to biomimicry. Problem based; a problem in the world solved by nature and Solution based; something in nature is found first and then applied to the world. This paper considers biomimicry to be in its infancy in interior architecture, and despite the paper being 8 years old, I believe it still is. There have been many implementations in the way of form but not so much in the way of function making this paper relevant in 2020. I will look to biomimicry as an aid to solve problems in both function and aesthetic, as the design we see in nature has been perfected over millions of years of evolution to work in the best way possible.
Petermans, A. and Nuyts, E., 2016. ‘Happiness in place and space: Exploring the contribution of architecture and interior architecture to happiness’. In: Celebration & Contemplation: 10th International Conference on Design & Emotion. Amsterdam: The Design & Emotion Society, pp.114-122.
The paper begins with a descriptive approach to elements of happiness and wellbeing. Creating a base line touching on the circumstances of one’s life as well as the possible effect of genetics. The paper righty suggest that interior architecture is a circumstantial factor that can lead to the enabling of activities that create happiness. Something that I think it fails to address properly is the situations where the building may need to create happiness. Places like nurseries or rehabilitation facilities need this emotion designed into the physical building rather than designing it into its functional capabilities. The trouble with happiness is that it’s subjective and although the paper highlights this, when it is applied to the real world how can it be quantified or proven. I am interested in emotion in design and I will still try to apply this to my work, but the results will always be subjective.
Morgan, S., Pullon, S. and McKinlay, E., 2020. ‘Collaborative Care in Primary Care: The Influence of Practice Interior Architecture on Informal Face-to-Face Communication—An Observational Study’. Health Environments Research & Design Journal, 13(4), pp.1-20.
In healthcare much of the communication between team members will be informal face-to-face, communication that is not planned formal meetings. However, it is suggested that interior architecture affects the way staff can do this. Observational experiments conducted on three practices of different layouts showed that staff in larger practices had more informal interactions. It also showed that these interactions took place more frequently in destinations rather than transitions zones, however in the larger practices the conversation often carried from one to the other. This experiment has highlighted the importance of human centred design and shown that consideration for the user is paramount. A space must be designed in a way that afford its function and enables the user to effectively do their job. In my design work it could be useful to consult with the demographic of the end user to gauge the needs from their first-hand perspective.
Miller, M., 1997. ‘Color For Interior Architecture‘. New York: Wiley.
This book is a fascinating example of the depth reasoning behind the use of something as simple as colour. The book covers many aspects of colour including, physical aspects, its optics and use in illusions, colour relationships and symbolic meanings. It mentions that colour is all to do with perception, which I believe is an important consideration I design. Everyone has their own perception and designing for all can be a very difficult task, therefore having a clear understanding enables one to design effectively. Although this book was published in 1997 it is largely still applicable today, maybe with a few additions rather than changes. In my own work it will be particularly important to consider the application of colour; considering the social, cultural and ethical impact of colour as well as the physical perception that colour can create.
Leydecker, S., Kölbel, M. and Peters, S., 2008. ‘Nano Materials In Architecture, Interior Architecture, And Design‘. Basel: Birkhäuser. pp. 8-49.
This book explores nano materials with many examples and applications. It also looks at inspirations and manufacturing methods behind nano-materials. Its inspiration is often found in nature providing many more examples of biomimicry. It also looks at top-down and bottom-up manufacturing methods. Nanotechnology has become a hot topic and according to this book it has been overused in the wrong applications. Despite this it still predicts that nanotechnology still has a long way to go with a vast amount of application. Although this book was written in 2008 this is still the case, we have developed further but it is still considered an emerging science. I think as nanotechnology develops and becomes less of an emerging science; we will begin to see these technologies more readily available in the commercial market. Nanotechnologies are definitely something to be considered in my own work, but they should be used appropriately.
Grimley, C. and Love, M., 2018. ‘The Interior Design Reference + Specification Book‘. 10th ed. Beverly: Rockport Publishers, pp.8-270.
This book is a comprehensive guide to the world of interior design. Originally published in 2007 it is regularly updated and revised to maintain a current and up to date content. It covers a number of topics from colour and materials to lighting and furniture. It approaches these in a way that is not only informative but instructive as well, giving the reader the tools to not just understand the theory but know how to present and implement these ideas. I feel that what this book highlights is that understanding and doing the basics well is so important. Building a base knowledge of the fundamentals will enable a designer to understand spaces and their potentials a lot faster and easier. Obviously, this will also come with experience but for myself now, building this base knowledge bank will be invaluable as I progress in my design career.
Harry Castle 