Professional Practice for Interior Designers. Christine M. Piotrowski
country can discover even a sole practitioner in another country.
Embracing technology gives any size design firm many advantages. Designers now have the opportunity to search out products outside their immediate market area. Technology also allows for rapid production of design documents, and easy communication throughout the world.
The profession thrives during economic booms and, like every industry, redefines itself when the economy is slow. Regardless of the impact of the economy, interior design professionals and students will be faced with continuous change in the profession. Finding one's way by gaining education, experience, and competency to work as a professional interior designer in the 21st century includes achieving knowledge and skills in professional practice.
New pressures and responsibilities will continue to affect all practitioners, businesses, and even students of interior design. This short history provides a context for the development of the interior design profession and is meant to give readers an appreciation of the roots of the profession called interior design. Table 1‐1 summarizes its chronological development. Additional history of the associations is presented later in Chapter 2.
INTERIOR DESIGN VALUE
“I don’t understand why you charge so much!”
Most interior designers have, at one time or another, heard this comment from clients. Many professionals are stumped as to how to respond to this statement. Professionals and the profession still must combat the undervaluing of interior design services.
TABLE 1‐1. Highlighted chronology of the growth of the interior design profession
| 1878 | First‐of‐its‐kind semiannual furniture market. Held in Grand Rapids, Michigan. |
| 1904 | First real use of term interior decoration. First courses in interior decoration offered at the New York School of Applied and Fine Arts. |
| 1905 | Elsie de Wolfe obtains her first commission as an interior decorator. She is credited with being the first interior decorator. |
| 1913 | Elsie de Wolfe publishes the first true book on interior decoration, The House in Good Taste. |
| 1920s | Greater effort is made by department stores to market home furnishings. Manufacturing centers of home furnishings begin to develop. Art Deco period creates greater interest in interior decoration of homes and offices. Dorothy Draper credited with being the first woman interior decorator to specialize in commercial interiors. Decorator clubs begin forming in larger cities. Design education strengthened in many parts of the country. |
| 1931 | Grand Rapids furniture show. Meeting to create a national professional organization. In July, American Institute of Interior Decorators (AIID) is founded; William R. Moore elected first national president of AIID. |
| 1936 | AIID's name changed to American Institute of Decorators (AID). |
| 1940s | Post‐World War II industrialism encourages new technologies in furniture manufacturing. Industrialism produces increased need for, and importance of, nonresidential interior design. |
| 1950s | Development of open landscape planning concept in Germany by Quickborner Team. |
| 1951 | First time a state considers legislation to license interior design. |
| 1957 | National Society for Interior Designers (NSID) founded from a splinter group of the New York AID chapter. |
| 1961 | AID changes its name to American Institute of Interior Designers (AIID). |
| 1963 | National Office Furnishings Association (NOFA) creates NOFA‐d (NOFA‐designers), a professional group for interior designers who work for office furnishings dealers. Interior Design Educators Council (IDEC) founded to advance the needs of educators of interior design. |
| 1967 | NOFA and NOFA‐d change names to NOPA and NOPA‐d, respectively, when NOFA merges with stationery and supplies dealers to form National Office Products Association. |
| 1968 | Introduction of “Action Office,” designed by Robert Probst for Herman Miller, Inc. First true open‐office furniture product. |
| 1969 | Institute of Business Designers (IBD) incorporated. NOPA‐d is parent organization. |
| 1970 | Charles Gelber elected first national president of IBD. Foundation for Interior Design Education Research (FIDER) is founded. Is responsible for reviewing and accrediting undergraduate and graduate interior design programs. |
| 1972 | CIDQ (Council for Interior Design Qualification) formed. It is responsible for the development of the NCIDQ examination. |
| 1974 | National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) incorporated. Charged with the development and administration of a common qualification examination. Louis Tregre, FAID, serves as first president of NCIDQ. |
| 1975 | American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) formed from the merger of AID and NSID. Norman deHaan is first national ASID president. |
| 1976 | The first Canadian provincial associations—Interior Designers of Ontario and the Interior Designers of British Columbia—were admitted as members of NCIDQ. |
| 1982 | Alabama becomes first state with title registration legislation for interior design. |
| 1988 | First major discussion of 1995 Hypotheses, the document that begins a discussion of unification of interior design professional associations. |
| 1992 | Passage of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which establishes accessibility standards for all public buildings. |
| 1993 | U.S. Green Building Council formed to promote sustainable design. |
| 1994 | Unification of IBD, ISID, and CFID to form International Interior Design Association (IIDA). The existing code councils form the International Code Council (ICC) to develop a new universal standard of building codes. |
| 1995 | First International Code from the ICC is published. |
| 1996 | Federal government officially recognizes interior design as a profession. |
| 1990s | Numerous states pass title, practice, or certification legislation. |
| 2000 |
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