We think about the effect that people have on a building and how they are affected by it."

Architects often scoff at the practice of interior design, saying that what designers do is simply part of architecture.  But, if that is true, why don’t architects design the interiors of their buildings better?

This is bound to raise some hackles, so let me be clear about what I mean.  Architecture is a difficult profession.  The demands of a profession that is called both an art and a science, which is further complicated by onerous amounts of regulation oversight, professional liability and value engineering (a true oxymoron), leave no doubt that architecture is hard.  Architects often complain that their profession is being chipped away by specialists like project managers and interior designers.  Given the enormous obstacles of getting something built, I think Architects should welcome all the help they can get.

Good interior design brings richness and depth to a strong architectural design.  Designers look at the experiential aspects of space.  We think about the effect that people have on a building and how they are affected by it.

• What is the entrance sequence?
• What do you see from that vantage point?
• Where will someone want to go?
• What does that surface feel like?
• Is there a comfortable place to sit?
• What attracts the eye?

These are some of the questions that interior design asks – this is a natural layering of experience over the architectural language of a space.  Architecture is enhanced by integrating interiors into the building design as early as possible.  As a building takes shape, these questions become part of the design process, along with form and function.   The human-centric nature of interior design extends to the means of communicating a design to a client.  Where architects might use precedent images, 3D modelling and building material samples, the palette of materials for an interior tends to be wider and includes colour as a vitally important component.   Interiors communication is primarily tactile as people will touch these surfaces more than any other part of a building assembly.

The construction industry is quickly adopting building information management as the preferred industry standard.  This methodology has design integration as its central premise, bringing all aspects of building delivery into the same model.  As the industry moves in the direction of integrated project delivery, an integrated architecture and interior design process makes even more sense.  Having always practiced interior design within an architectural practice, this feels like a natural process to me.  I have always seen and understood how and why buildings come together.  I have also always injected the human condition into that design process and our combined efforts are better for it.