VDIS10006 Restoration Interiors 1 Lecture 3:

Concept Development Ramona Solomon

You’re  trying  to  solve  a  problem  and  your  concept  will  lead  the  way  and  give  you  direc8on  for  your  design  decisions.      •  How  do  you  form  a  concept?      •  What  ques8ons  do  you  need  to  ask  in  order  to  develop  one?    •  How   does   your   concept   become   the   roadmap   for   your  

design?  

A  good  design  begins  with  a  good  design  concept.    

   concept  (n)  –  a  general  idea  used  to  formulate  a  plan  

 A  design  concept  is  the  idea  behind  a  design.  It’s  how  you  plan  on  solving   the   design   problem   in   front   of   you.   It’s   the   underlying  logic,  thinking,  and  reasoning  for  how  you’ll  design  a  website.    Your   concept   will   lead   to   your   choices   in   color   and   type.   It’ll  choose   your   aesthe8c   and   determine   floor   plan   layout.   Every  design   decision   you   make   will   fall   back   on   your   concept   for  direc8on.    Your  design  concept  becomes  the  framework  for  all  your  design  decisions.  

What  is  a  Design  Concept?    

 Verbal  –  the  verbal  parts  of  your  concept  might  be  words  you  use   to   describe   the   site.   For   example   your   design   concept  might   be   one   of   sophis8cated   elegance.   Verbal   concepts  tend   toward   the   abstract.   They’re   focused   on   the  message  your  design  is  to  communicate.    Visual  –  the  visual  parts  of  your  concept  might  be  a  specific  image   or   color   scheme.   It   might   be   an   idea   to   use   circles  prominently.   Visual   concepts   tend   to   be   a   liMle   more  concrete.   They   should   come   from   the   verbal   part   of   your  concept.   Visual   concepts   are   focused   more   on   the   how   of  conveying  your  message.  

We  can  think  of  design  concepts  in  two  ways…  

What  to  do  Before  Crea8ng  a  Design  Concept  Developing   a   design   concept   is   something   of   an   individual  process.  There’s  no  one   right  way   to  generate  an   idea  and  what  works  for  one  won’t  necessarily  work  for  another.  However  there  are  parts  to  the  process  that  everyone  should  go  through.    Defining   the   problem   –   You   can’t   solve   a   problem   without  knowing  what  that  problem  is.  Before  developing  a  concept  for  a  site   you  need   to   talk   to   your   client   and  ask  ques8ons  about   the  client  and  their  goals  for  the  site.    Research   –   Your   client  won’t   be   able   to   tell   you   everything   you  want  to  know.  You’ll  have  to  do  your  own  research…    Both   of   the   above   should   get   you   thinking   and   begin   the   idea  genera8on  process.      

Genera8ng  Ideas  Collec8ng   inspira8on   is   one   thing.   Genera8ng   ideas   from  inspira8on  or  from  within  is  another.      There  are  a  few  ways  you  can  generate  ideas….  

 Brainstorming  

 Sketching  

 Mind  Mapping  

Genera8ng  Ideas…            Brainstorming  Brainstorming  –  When  brainstorming  write  down  any  idea  that  comes  to  you  as  a  word  or  phrase.   The   goal   is   to   jot   down   as  many   things   as   possible   without   spending  much   8me  thinking  about  any  of  them  except  to  let  them  lead  to  new  ideas.  The  idea  is  to  generate  as  many  design  solu8ons  as  possible.  A  bubble  diagram  can  help  you  to  see  the  ideas  grow  and  even  become  interrelated.      The  basic  rules  of  brainstorming  are:    a)  Quan8ty  counts  at  this  stage,  not  quality.    b)  Wild  and  exaggerated  ideas  are  encouraged.    c)  Every  idea  has  equal  worth  and  should  be  wriMen  down.    d)  Build  on  ideas  put  forward.    e)  Postpone  judgement  or  analysis.      Working  on  a  large  piece  of  paper  is  the  tradi8onal  method,  however,  if  working  alone,  then  a  Visual  Diary  is  a  good  place  to  record  your  ideas.      Begin  by  defining  the  design  problem.  For  the  interior  designer,  this  may  require  the  isola8on  of  a  few  key  descriptors  such  as  “beachy”,  “relaxed”,  “and  welcoming”.      Use  word  associa8on  to  extend  the  concept.    Beachy  -­‐  sand,  water,  open  spaces,  dunes,  breeze,  blue,  aqua,  shells,  dri[wood,  fishing  etc.    

Sketching   –   Some8mes   words   alone   aren’t   enough   and   sketching   is   a   beMer   way   to  generate   ideas.  You  have  an   idea   that   feels   right.  This   is   the  beginning.  Sketch   it  out!   It  only  takes  a  few  seconds,  and  it  gets  the  idea  out  of  your  head.  Now  sketch  some  more  ideas.  You  won’t  know  whether  your  first  idea  is  the  best  un8l  you  explore  others.      Learn  to  embrace  your  pen  and  paper,  and  you’ll  be  thrilled  at  your  speed  of  ideas.  You’ll  wonder  why  you  ever  fought  it.  By  giving  yourself  the  freedom  to  scrawl  out  rough  ideas,  you’ll  get  to  crea8ve  places  you  could  never  have  imagined          

Genera8ng  Ideas…                Sketching  

Mind  Mapping  –   is   a  way   to   brainstorm   in   a  more   visual  way   by   showing   connec8ons  between   similar   and   dissimilar   ideas.   It   is   a   great   way   to   see   how   different   ideas   are  connected  to  each  other.    Click  here   to   go   to   a   video   that  provides   a   rapid   (99   second)  overview  of  how   to  Mind  Map.        

Genera8ng  Ideas…              Mind  Mapping  

Mood  Board/  Concept  Board          

The  concept  board   is  a  visual  presenta8on  of   style,  mood  and  colour  of  the  future  space.  A  client   looking  at  a  concept  board  must   be   able   to   understand   the   overall   feel   and   look   of   the  room.  Though,   it  doesn’t  show  the  concrete  furniture,  finishes  or   accessories   yet,   so   the   designer   has   the   freedom   when  working  further  on  the  project.       Design  Statement

         Design   Statement   introducing   the   “Big   Picture”  of  the  concept.      A   strong   design   statement   is   specific   and  discusses   the   ac8ons   the   designer   will   take   to  meet   the   client’s   needs.   Your   statement   should  include   both   your   inten8ons   or   goals   for   the  space   and   the   specific   strategies   you’ll   use   to  accomplish  them.      

Ideas  need  to  be  developed  for….  

•  Furniture  selec8on  •  Space  planning  •  Colour  scheme    •  Window  treatments  if  required  •  So[  furnishings  •  Accessories  •  Ligh8ng  •  Cabinetry    •  Wall,  ceiling  and  floor  coverings  •  Materials  &  Finishes  •  etc….    

At  this  stage  of  the  design  process,  design  solu8ons  are  refined,  clarified  and  determined  to  become  func8onal  and  individual.    

Refining  ideas…                

Space  Planning    While  an  architect  or  building  designer  is  responsible  for  the  main  structural  design  of  a  building,  the  interior  designer  can  have  input  into  the  use  of  space  within  the  structure.      The  easiest  way  to  develop  changes  is  by  laying  tracing  paper  over  the  original  plans  and  drawing  up  the  new  concept.      Once   the   designer   is   sa8sfied   with   a   proposal,   he   or   she   should  dra[  up  the  plans  as  professionally  as  possible  for  client  comment.    

Traffic  Flow  and  Furniture  Placement  Analysis      Copies  of  the  plans  should  then  be  used  to  conduct  traffic  flow  and   furniture  placement  analysis.   This   is   the  most   important  step  as  it  confirms  the  func8onality  of  the  design  proposal.    

Refining  ideas…                

Refining  ideas…                

The  best  designs  start  with  a  great  concept.  It’s  your  idea  for  how  you’ll  solve  the  problem  of  communica8ng  your  client’s  message.      Your  concept  will  show  you  where  to  go  with  specific  design  decisions.   It’s   the   roadmap   you   come   back   to   again   and  again  through  the  design  process.  If  something  isn’t  working  it’s  probably  because  it  doesn’t  fit  the  concept.  If  nothing  is  working  you  might  want  to  explore  a  different  concept.      

Concept  Report…                

This  document  outlines  in  great  detail  the  concept  design    proposal  for  the  client.      It   is   impera8ve   that   it   is   presented   professionally.   This  means  that   it  should  not  only   look  impressive,  aMen8on  to  detail  must  also  be  clear  and  accurate.      It   should   reflect   the  designer’s  ability   to  gather  a    brief  and   produce   design   concepts   that   meet   and   exceed   a    client’s  expecta8ons.