Basic Principles of Interior Design focuses on the fundamentals of designing spaces. The concepts developed within the text, and the twelve different colour-coding schemes illustrate how different objects and their placement affect each other in a space. The text discusses the use of balance, proportion, unity, proportion, texture, line, and color. Each of these concepts is shown to have specific roles in the design of interiors, including using balance to achieve a sense of scale, or symmetry. They also apply to objects’ spatial relationships, which are necessary for an interior to be well-organized and aesthetically pleasing.
Symmetrical principles relate how various elements affect each other. The left and right balanced by equal proportion, and the background (or border) in terms of contrast are considered symmetrical when arranged with similar shapes, textures and colours. Contrast is used to give emphasis to features that are either dominant or complementary. It is achieved by introducing contrasting elements, usually in groups, and using appropriate amounts of each. Symmetrical themes may also use contrast properly, by using textures and colours that stand out or recede from one another. In this way they can create visual balance and harmony.
The balance between complete opposite elements is called a clash, and it occurs most frequently in interior design. Contrast occurs most frequently in interiors that attempt to express some form of contrast. This balance can be one of two things: balance between the different elements, or a clash between them. When there is a clash, one or both of the elements will overpower the others, resulting in a visual imbalance. For example, one may find a sofa and loveseat on the left, a brown leather chair against a cream tiled wall. Because both items have very different strong qualities, there is no way they can be placed together, and the result is a total visual clash.
A form of harmony occurs when all similar objects meet with an equally proportioned quantity of similar elements. In interior design this would be considered a synesthetic effect, or a complementarity. All three elements should be as balanced as possible. A synesthetic harmony could be achieved by placing similar items next to each other, such as a bookcase made of the same wood. In this case, all the three items compliment each other, and the bookcase itself does not dominate the room.
Visual balance can also be accomplished by making sure the most visually appealing objects are placed in the most accessible areas. For example, it is the easiest ways to make sure that a bookcase dominates an area, and does not hide or overpower other elements, such as a vase of fresh flowers. Another way to accomplish visual balance in interior decorating is to make sure that all elements are placed at eye level. This is also an easy way to ensure a sense of uniformity among furniture, and a big help in coordinating any interior decorating scheme.
The third basic principle of design is proximity. This relates to the first two principles, but it also has an additional layer of complexity. If an element is too far away from another element, it will be perceived as being distanced, and will therefore not be as easy to integrate into the overall design scheme. However, if an object is too close to an object in front of it, then the relationship between the two elements may be diluted, and will no longer have the desired effect. Here, again, a combination of other techniques, such as staging, will be necessary to restore the intended visual effect.
The fourth interior design principle deals with visual weight. Objects in a room are judged by how they affect the eye when they are viewed from the eye. This is different than geometric shape because geometric shape is strictly a matter of distance. It only makes sense for furniture and decor to have distance, since these things are never placed in front of others and therefore their visual weight is solely based on how they affect the eye’s position. A sofa obviously has more visual weight than a table, because it is placed in front of people, and as such its position affects the way that people perceive it.
The fifth interior design principle deals with texture. When you are designing a room, it is important that the patterns, textures, and designs that you use have some sort of unity, so that when the eye looks at them, they make sense. To create unity, it is important that you create the illusion of one uniform color throughout the design.
Source : أسس التصميم الداخلي
