Year One Interior Architecture and Design (BA Hons)
About Interior Architecture and Design:
In this course, students will dive into the world of designing and developing internal spaces, considering how they fit into the overall architecture, including important aspects like the existing building fabric, intent for new finishes and fixed furniture design. Through practical modules, students will refine their design skills and shape their identity as designers.
Project Details:
Students are tasked to investigate an existing building whose spaces could be seen a blank canvas to explore design intent, taking into consideration - Research, Design Development and Communication.
*Please note* There is no expectation for community partners to initiate, tender and construct the project based on the student proposals. The reward of the work is for the students to engage with a local organisation and for the learning, development, and design conclusion that visiting and liaising with the community partner.
Examples of previous projects:
The Nottinghamshire Croquet Club has been an established source of recreation on the Grade II listed Highfields Park next to the University of Nottingham for nearly a century. This project aimed to breathe new life into the two main areas of the pavilion buildings. They wanted students to update the furniture, materials, and interiors, and investigate extra space for storage and events.
Each pavilion building was split in two, giving students the chance to come up with unique ideas for seating, storage, lighting, and acoustic treatment.
Key points of focus:
- The East Pavilion: They planned out a serving area, dining space, and a versatile spot for different events.
- The West Pavilion: They worked on creating a welcoming reception area for visitors,a place for teaching, and a display to honour members. They also made sure there was enough room for storing equipment.
Throughout the project, students kept in mind that the buildings were Grade II listed and had to follow legislation and guidelines to meet necessary learning outcomes for the project.
Above all, the goal was to meet the needs of the croquet club, whether it was attracting new members, hosting competitions, or providing a place for socialising in the beautiful surroundings of Highfields Park.
The student’s experience working with a local organisation offered an insight into one of those first key development goals that are so critical in industry – to build relationships. Students visited, mapped out, sketched, and modelled a design intent, listening to the partner’s brief to match that of a client/designer relationship. They have luckily impressed a client enough to initiate plans to implement in the future and have developed their professional liaison and industry skill set along the way.
Sam Duffy - Lecturer, Interior Architecture and Design
Indicative timeline and what’s involved:
April – September 2024 – Complete the Community Engaged Learning Project Proposal Form. A member of the Community Engagement and Volunteering Team can support you with this.
September 2024 – Attend a Project Co-creation Workshop held at NTU. This willallow you to spend time with Academic Teams to fine-tune your project proposals ready to introduce to students.
November 2024 – December 2024 - Students will be introduced to the project – this will include a site visit that will be arranged between yourself and the academicteam at a time convenient to you.
November 2024 - February 2025 – Meet with the students, academic staff and the Community Engagement and Volunteering Team throughout the project (approx.once a week) to ensure all is going to plan.
November 2024 - February 2025 – Meet with the students, academic staff and theCommunity Engagement and Volunteering Team throughout the project (approx.once a week) to ensure all is going to plan.
February 2025 – Exhibition of completed work and opportunity to comment andfeed into academic assessment.