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Where Do I Honestly Begin? I Feel Like I Have Wasted Time & Should Give Up!

tabithamccourt

I'm trying to figure out where to begin. I am 28 and have been interested in interior design for well over four years now, mainly in the fields of education and hospitality. I have my own project vision that emerged while I was in high school, but I never had the urge to go to architecture school due to financial and other situations going on. But I have been noting all of my concept ideas that I have gotten through the years and I have a portfolio on DeviantArt, probably the worst joke of a place to have one, but that's where it is. I have been doing 3d interior design concepts, mainly of classrooms in order to show a particular theme that I can implement and my standardized design signature which can be modified if needed be. I don't focus so much on photorealism as I do on trying to get the concepts down and proper. I am inspired by lots of things from video games, to cinema design, to other designers themselves in the field of luxury interior design. Yes, I cross the luxury style aesthetic with that of school design. And also, don't forget all the modern technology that 21st century schools are supposed to have. That's not left out. This concept of mine is not limited to schools as the idea is "School Architecture Re-Imagined" using it for things like recreation and hospitality, and even residential living spaces, yep, inspired by classrooms and the aesthetics of the older school buildings. I just don't know where to begin. As one who can visualize and bring forth a concept design, I know that I could have actual qualified people do all of the labour and work for it all. I just don't know how to promote anything or if anyone will take it seriously because of how extravagant I do things. I do this because I have a love for the custom wood interiors that used to be a part of school design only to be replaced by cheap metal ugly mass produced crap. I am longing to bring back a craft that has been abandoned for cheap modernism with hopes of re imagining it for other purposes. But I am stuck. I don't even know if I have time for design school or can afford it. Want to see my portfolio? It's here: https://boardroomlife.devianta... 

The project is called Boardroom Life by the way because the idea of calling nice classrooms boardrooms just stuck when I was in high school to differentiate between the nice wood interiors and the ugly unappealing metal ones.

I have been creating daily and it's like I can't stop doing it as it drive me. 

 
Feb 26, 18 11:47 am
Non Sequitur

Have you looked at any school designed within the last 40years?  Nothing looks like this.  It's terribly expensive to build and no-one would ever want to teach in a classroom filled with so much visual pollution.

Elements you use, such as pilasters, column capitals, braces, etc... have real purposes.  Using them simply for decoration is not good design.  If you want to explore education interiors, look at scale and proportion, not surface treatment.

Also, you're not too old to go back to school.  Just find an accredited architecture school and for Sean Connery's sake, don't include these images in your application portfolio.


Feb 26, 18 12:03 pm  · 
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joseffischer

Why do you hate so much on po-mo? Decoration is by its very nature good design (unless it's badly designed) What does a brick want to be? Whatever I want it to, and wherever I put it!

Feb 26, 18 1:17 pm  · 
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Non Sequitur

Is that a serious question?

Feb 26, 18 1:35 pm  · 
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accesskb

who's going to pay for all that unnecessary embellishment? We can barely find money to build schools with simple classrooms. I think the biggest disconnect with those who aren't in the profession or those who design but have never really built anything is they don't realize every detail and angle costs money and there is a budget to work with. No one works for free or like slaves from the bygone era while getting paid peanuts. (okay, maybe architects do) xD

Feb 27, 18 9:41 pm  · 
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joseffischer

No non... it wasn't a serious question ; P

Feb 28, 18 4:07 pm  · 
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randomised

your classroom reminds me of this:

Feb 26, 18 12:31 pm  · 
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hellion

The color choices.

Feb 26, 18 12:44 pm  · 
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thisisnotmyname

The OP should consider doing hospitality interiors.

AvroKO and Roman + Williams come to mind when I look at the portfolio work.

Feb 26, 18 1:25 pm  · 
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Almosthip7

Viva Las Vegas

Feb 26, 18 1:28 pm  · 
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archinine
Can’t say I can think of any classrooms where a chandelier would be necessary much less a school that would pay for one. Let alone 4 in the same room. OP talks all about interiors yet I see no furniture or layout. This is just wall and ceiling paper on a box. There is practically no thought whatsoever to how this space will be used for it’s intended purpose or occupants. There aren’t even room for outlets or doors or windows on those crazy glass mirror panels. Looks like the sims on steroids. Or some terrifying dystopian video game.

To answer OP question, no, no one will take you seriously with these images nor that grand artiste ‘my concept is so great’ attitude. Get off deviant art and spend some time looking through actual interior design / architecture books on detail, scale, proportion program materials etc.
Feb 26, 18 3:25 pm  · 
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Le Courvoisier

I can see any one of these images becoming the latest hipster bar in NYC, Chicago, Portland, etc...

Word of advice - these designs are WAY TOO BUSY. You need visual relief too. 

Feb 26, 18 4:59 pm  · 
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thisisnotmyname

The op just needs to concoct some written blather about how the designs are about "storytelling" and "authenticity" and the stuff would be on par with a lot of the hospitality design today.

Feb 27, 18 12:12 pm  · 
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Steeplechase

I don’t see how this is related to literal old school design. 

Feb 26, 18 6:06 pm  · 
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sameolddoctor

So ugly its kinda cool.

Feb 26, 18 9:53 pm  · 
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kjdt

I'm not sure what you're asking. 
Where should you begin what? An education in interior design? Improving your work? Trying to start a career with this portfolio?

And should you give up on what? Interior design as a dream? Contac papering the same shoe box over and over?

In all seriousness I think you could benefit from some design education.  This doesn't mean you have to drop everything and enroll in a degree program. Interior design is taught as a continuing ed offering at many colleges, universities, and even at community arts centers.  Also some basic color theory courses would help.  You can even find classes on how to develop a professional portfolio.

If you're asking if you could be a practicing interior designer right now: I'd expect you'd have difficulty finding a job in a firm with that as your portfolio. It needs much more variety, and evidence that you understand spatial relationships, materials, drawing conventions, etc. Nothing's stopping you from practicing on your own - most states don't regulate the practice of interior design (though some regulate what you can call yourself and your business).  First: take your portfolio off of DeviantArt.  Put it somewhere, anywhere else.  Second: curate it down to about 4 images of that rectangular room. Then develop some new more, new, different work!  You need furniture, casework, drapery and other spatial and textural elements.  

Feb 27, 18 5:04 pm  · 
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accesskb

Won't lie but those designs might pass you in interior design school, but if you did that in architecture school, you'll probably get a FAIL.

28 is not late to attend architecture school but keep an open mind.  It takes a lifetime to get proficient in architecture and there is always room to improve and learn new things.  You'll realize architecture is a lot more to architecture than what most of us going into it initially thought. You might hate it or come out with fresh perspective.

Feb 27, 18 9:51 pm  · 
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