Interior Design: What It Is and What It's For

Apparently, the word "Interior Design" is one of the most common design terms which is very familiar to us. Many of us are familiar with this design phrase because we have seen billboards or shop signs offering interior design services or... kitchen set. Yes, right?

In fact, this term is so commonplace in our daily lives that it is often used incorrectly for some things. It's as if the term Interior Design is equivalent to arranging flowers, balloons for a birthday party, or even choosing garden lights.

Just to be clear, what exactly is Interior Design? What makes it special? What are the things it encompasses?

Definition of Interior Design

Before we go any further, first of all, let's agree that Interior Design =/= Kitchen Set. So, after reading this article, hopefully no one will say, "Interior design is what makes kitchen sets, right?".

Okay, so what, exactly, is interior design? Why is it so often associated with making kitchen sets, sofas, and curtains?

The above are just a few of the many examples that illustrate how confused people are about the profession of interior designers. Many people still don't know exactly what an architect does, let alone an interior designer.

Many people know that if they want a safe building, they will hire an engineer, and if they want the building to look good, they will hire an architect. This misperception will become a reality if people do not get the right information. This is just between interior design and architecture. Not to mention, the perception of interior design and interior decoration.

In short, interior design is a discipline of fine arts that designs solutions through the layout of spaces in buildings in an aesthetic manner so that the quality of life of the users of these spaces is improved.

The above definition is reinforced by Suptandar's statement (1995: 11) that interior design is a science or way of organizing a room, so that it meets the requirements for obtaining comfort, satisfaction of physical and spiritual needs and safety for the wearer without neglecting aesthetic factors.

Interior design consists of two syllables, namely "design" and "interior". In the Big Indonesian Dictionary (KBBI) 'design' means outline; design. Thus, design is the activity of designing a design.

Design is a word that comes from the English language, namely "design". The definition of design itself in the Oxford Dictionary is a plan or drawing made to show the appearance and function of a building, clothing, or other object before it is actually made.

It can be concluded that design is an activity to design something before it is actually made, so that later something that has been designed functions properly and looks attractive.

History of Interior Design

Just like fine art, design history also relies heavily on artifacts related to interior design. From the artifacts found, it can be seen that each culture has a different pattern of interior design development.

Each civilization developed architectural art, furniture styles and room accessories based on the availability of materials in their respective geographical areas or obtained from trade and the availability of cheap labor. 

Egypt, Greece and Rome have reached a high civilization in the ancient era, a civilization characterized by the existence of elite groups, many cheap human resources and has a religious tradition that encourages the emergence of artistic skills and the desire to gain immortality through buildings and property.

Apart from Egypt, Greece and Rome, the main development in the history of interior design can be seen in the Italian Renaissance, where all art activities reached their peak supported by the nobility and the rich supported the development of art with their wealth. In Italy at that time there were two social classes, the rich nobility and the poor peasants.

The peasants were not affected by the development of designs, as new beautiful and luxurious designs were reserved for the rich only. Until that time, anything beautiful remained the preserve of the nobility, far beyond the reach of the common people. The 17th and 18th centuries were a period of interior design in Italy and France.

Interior design is evolving and more affordable /accessible for the general public after the Industrial Revolution. At that time many were produced products for home needs at a lower price so that it can be affordable by all circles.

This also led to the rise of the Economic Revolution in America, which made the upper middle class rich and had excessive money, so there was a need and desire to beautify their homes.

At that time, there were also many magazines that discussed the issue of new interior design styles and the need for people to consult ideas in the arrangement of houses and furniture began to emerge. This encouraged the development of the interior design industry.

There are thousands of people who go on to become professionals in designing homes and office buildings as well as people who do space designing as a hobby and give free consultations or spend their time decorating their own homes.

Interior Design Scope

The duties and scope of work of interior designers include designing furniture and other room accessories, not just picking and matching them like interior decorators. Here are some of the scopes of interior design work.

1. Design the form of furniture with consideration of ergonomics, function, style, durability of finishing, structural stability in use, choosing the right drawer rails, hinges and handles, as well as determining the use of materials and placement in space.
2. Determine the appropriate type and style of windows or other shutters based on light and sunlight control, privacy, fire proofing, acoustic fittings and control systems.
3. Choosing the right shape and method of placing art or decorations and ensuring that they will not fall or hurt someone.
4. Choose the right type of wall finish based on the aspects of beauty, durability, acoustic function, ease of cleaning, fire safety, and ensure that the wall finishes used are not allergic or toxic.
5. Select appropriate plant species and ensure that the plants selected do not have strong or toxic odors that are harmful to humans, especially children.
6. Describe the space plan and indicate the location of furniture in accordance with the client's wishes as well as the accessibility requirements of the space.
7. Select the type and shape of lamps based on the desired function and impression, illustrate and show the location of lamp placement and control.
8. Determine the right material, shape, color and pattern of the floor based on the desired function and impression. The elements of function that must be considered include fire resistance, sound dampening ability and safety (non-slip).

The points above can also deductively explain the functions, objectives and tasks of interior design in general. But to complete the literacy of these objectives, here are the objectives according to Wicaksono and Tisnawati (2014), namely:

1. Improve function
2. Enriches the aesthetic value
3. Enhance the psychological aspect of a room

As mentioned earlier, interior design encompasses the field of architecture that covers the inside of a building. Example: Temporary fixed, mobile, or decorative interior design.

The design work is divided into 3 groups, namely:

1. Fixed interior design

Designing interior designs ranging from planning existing building plans, lay-outs, floor plans, ceiling plans, cuts, axonometry, details, perspectives, mock-ups, animations, and other presentation techniques.

2. Moveable interior design

Micro interior design, such as furniture design, product design, interior landscape design, handicraft, etc.

3. Decorative design

Ornamental design, such as designing wedding party decorations, designing birthday parties, etc.

To bring us to further understanding, knowing the elements or basic elements that make up the interior is the main thing to know. Knowing the elements, means knowing also what things can be designed to make a good design.

Since interior design is a branch of fine arts, similar elements of fine arts can also be found, such as: line, point, plane, texture, color, space, etc. However, interior design has unique and specific elements that must be considered when designing it. However, interior design has unique and specific elements that must be considered when designing it. 

Elements of Interior Design:

1. Floor 

The floor is the lower limit for the interior of a space. The floor extends horizontally. Many treatments can be applied to the floor ranging from: the type of material, the difference in floor height, and the application of shapes.

2. Wall

Walls are interior elements that insulate the interior space. The wall stretches vertically and is the most dominant plane in the building space. Walls can be applied with various types of finishing materials, shaping materials, lighting, etc.

3. Ceiling

The ceiling is an interior divider that extends horizontally across the top of the interior. Ceilings can be modified from the use of material types, height differences, and shape variants.

4. Aesthetic Elements

Interiors should contain aesthetic elements that refer to design principles such as proportion, scale, balance, and unity of space. If possible, an interior should be given art objects that have aesthetic value to beautify it.

5. Opening Element

What is meant by openings in space elements are windows, doors, and ventilation holes. By designing good openings, it will run good air circulation, so that the room becomes comfortable and healthy.

6. Light Element

Interior spaces require lighting that is sufficient in intensity. It's bright in some places, or there's a controller option to dim it as well. The ambience of the space will be formed with the application of good lighting.

After knowing the elements, knowing the basic principles in making interior elements will also greatly affect the space for our creations in this field. The principles of interior design follow design principles such as: Unity, Balance, Contrast, etc. 

Basic Principles of Interior Design

There are seven basic principles that are embodied in interior design

1. Unity and Harmony

That is, a room is considered as a unit where all the elements are complementary and continuous with one another so as to produce a balanced composition.

2. Balance

Balance means not "heavy" on one side. Not leaning too much to the right or left side or the top and so on. Everything that is balanced will create unity and harmony.

Balance is divided into 3 namely:

• Symmetrical Balance: Symmetrical balance occurs when the visual weight of the design elements is evenly distributed both horizontally and vertically. This style relies on the balance of two similar elements from two different sides
• Asymmetrical Balance: Asymmetrical balance occurs when the visual weight of a design element is unevenly distributed across the center axis of the page. This style relies on visual play such as scale, contrast, color to achieve balance with irregularity.
• Radial Balance: Is when all the design elements are arranged and centered in the middle. For example: Spiral-shaped staircase

3. Vocal Point

Vocal Point here means an accent that is the attraction of the room. It can be one or more. For example vocal point in the room are large windows in the room, fireplaces or can also be paintings. Giving certain colors or details and shapes can also be used as vocal point

4. Rhythm

In interior design, rhythm is all about visual patterns of repetition. Rhythm is defined as continuity or organized movement

5. Details

Details in interior design include all the fittings in the room. Starting from the main furniture, additional furniture, to artificial furniture. These details also have a big influence on the atmosphere of the space created.

6. Scale and Proportion

The two design principles go hand in hand, because both are related to size and shape. Scale and proportion here affect the comfort level of space users who are in the room.

7. Color

Color in interior design affects mood and ambience of the space. Soft colors will tend to create a calming atmosphere in the room, while bright colors will give the room a refreshing atmosphere.

So far, you've seen why interior design is often associated with kitchen sets, curtains, sofa materials, or the selection of flowers on the dining table. The truth is that either kitchen setThe curtains, fabric of the sofa, and even the flowers on the dining table are all small parts in the scope of interior design.

It's just that these things are a small part of a big responsibility of a profession that has to improve the quality of human life through spatial organization.

Interior decoration is generally related to the coating of interior elements, namely the coating of floors, walls and furniture as well as the arrangement of furniture and its accessories. There are no government regulations governing the work of decorators and no formal education requirements are needed, in fact, everyone who has the talent and interest can learn by themselves through magazines or other media to become an interior decorator.

Meanwhile, interior design has a wider and more specialized field with greater responsibilities including furniture design, selecting materials, determining construction, determining colors, planning space layouts with consideration of accessibility and others, all of which are based on functional, safety, comfort, and beauty considerations.

Interior designers must meet the requirements of formal education in their field and have sufficient design experience, even in some developed countries, interior designers must have certification obtained through an exam organized by a certification body, namely NCIDQ (National Council for Interior Design Qualification).

Wrapping up the differences between interior designers and interior decorators, perhaps, this table created by Lisa Whited IIDA/ASID that illustrates the differences between interior designers and interior decorators can further rectify the misperceptions of most people so far.