Architecture is one of the fields that provide numerous job for everyone in the world. Generally, interior designer is one of the professions that you can venture after completing your architectural or interior designer studies. Their expertise is crucial as interior design is a vital part of people’s life.
The birth of interior design mostly credited to Ancient Egyptians. Animal skins, textiles, murals and painted vases were used by Ancient Egyptians to decorate their mud huts. As for the powerful Egyptians such as King Tutankhamen, they used beautiful gold ornaments to represent their wealth and power in the Egyptians tombs. Kostof (1995) stated that one of the most characteristic aspects of Egyptian culture is conservatism, or rather the balance it always sustains between innovation and tradition. Meanwhile, The Roman and Greek civic establishments were based upon the Egyptian art of interior designing. These cultures celebrated their civic pride through this aspect. Both cultures used vases, mosaic, and wall paintings to beautify the interior spaces. However, this period was having an abrupt development to grimness because of the wars of Medieval Europe and ascents of the Christian church. This period was called The Dark Ages. Minimal furniture and wood panelling were used as well as simple textiles due to economic deterioration. After the Dark Ages, Europeans once again applied colour and ornamentation to their spaces. The creative Gothic style was used during the 12th century for its advantages of being able to capture natural light. During the Renaissance era in the 15th and 16th centuries, art and beauty were a renewed focus in interior design. Marble floors, inlaid woodwork, and paintings were the elements in the decoration itself. These elements can be found in the chapels, royal palaces and villas of Europe. The development keeps on improving with its challenges of having new technologies to be placed and to meet the needs of the clients. Thus, interior designer nowadays must design the interior spaces not only for aesthetic value but also its functionality.
To get deeper into this career, an interior designer is an independent contractor who determines space requirements and fills the space with essential and decorative items. They sketch the designs and place orders for materials and furnishes for their clients. For the final part, they need to ensure their clients are in satisfaction with the designs and the final product. There are also many types of interior designer that we know. For instance, corporate designer. A corporate designer is known as a designer who makes a design for proficient working environments, for example, small workplaces. They tend to focus more on how to make spaces functional and safe to the employees. Other than that is healthcare designers. They plan, design and renovate hospitals, clinics and healthcare centre. This profession specializes in evidence-based design, and research to achieve positive results for patients. For kitchen and bath designers, they focus more on designing kitchen and bathroom spaces and always have expert knowledge of cabinet, plumbing and electrical appliances. Meanwhile, for universal designers, they design most of the spaces such as living room and bedroom which is suitable and beneficial for all.
Before going into this course, some qualities are needed in someone to become an interior designer. This includes artistic ability, which is to develop aesthetically pleasing designs for the clients. They are also inquired to know how to edit blueprint and have a good visualization as interior designers have to have a strong sense of proportion and visual awareness to understand how the designs will be fit together in a space. Apart from that, problem-solving skills is also an important quality in an interior designer. It is to make sure the construction delays and overbudget can be prevented and to address challenges from the clients. They also have to be detail-oriented. The measuring has to be precise and the drawings have to be detailed so that it can be understood by the engineers and workers. Creativity is also a bonus so that the designers can ensure the clients’ needs and fulfil their satisfaction. As for building codes, inspection regulations and accessibility standards, it must be taken into consideration.
Interior designers work in a variety of environment. Technology changed how designers work and nowadays offices are the mainstay for interior designers. From time to time, interior designers also travel to the site for inspection, ideas brainstorming, and also to obtain the client’s preference. Adjusting to suit the schedules and deadlines of clients is how interior designers work schedules are and this includes meeting them outside the usual workday.
Usually, when entering an occupation in any field, a bachelor’s degree is needed. The coursework for interior designing should include classes in interior design, drawing and computer-aided design (CAD). Associate’s, Bachelor’s and master’s degree level are available programs in interior design. To apply for this program, one may need to submit their sketches and other examples to exhibit their artistic ability. The requirements of a license vary in every nation. In Malaysia, when one is a corporate member of the Malaysian Society of Interior Designers or has obtained a qualification that is considered to be equivalent by the Board of Architects can only be entitled to apply for the registration as an Interior Designer.
As a fun fact, any registered Architect shall be entitled to carry on business as an Interior Designer. Depending on factors such as education, location, work experience and the size of the interior design firm that is work on, the earnings of an interior in Malaysia vary. On statistics by PayScale, interior designers in Kuala Lumpur earns on average RM 34,429 a year. Freelance designers may ask for a higher price as more experience is gathered. Hard work, networking, marketing and perseverance are what needed to succeed in any other competitive industry.
