This is Part 10 of a 10 Part Series, derived from my lecture at the Boston Architectural College Student Lecture Series “Just Futures”. My lecture was titled “The Power of Interior Design to Impact Positive Futures for People and Communities”. My message was that Interior Design has the power and responsibility to positively impact people, communities and their futures, that this can only be achieved through an equitable and inclusive design process, and that positive outcomes for people and communities are the measure of a successful design. I shared this message through stories of our partnerships with our clients and their communities. This is the story of the BOSTON ARCHITECTURAL COLLEGE
This last story of my lecture series may be my favorite story yet, the Boston Architectural College. Around the year 2000, we were invited to rethink the lobby, with the goal of building community at the BAC.
When I was a BAC student, the culture was very different than it is today. It was more of an evening / commuter school. All classes were in the evening, there was very little social opportunity (unless you married your classmate, which I did!).
The project was the vision of President Ted Landsmark, who wanted to find a way to build and enhance community at the BAC, and also to connect the BAC to the outside community. The idea was to create spaces where students could meet and collaborate, and also more easily see eachother’s work, and feel more comfortable popping in to reviews for example.
Today, it’s probably hard to imagine, but the first and 2nd floors used to be very different. There was a gallery, but it was sunken (and not accessible). The thesis room (AKA the fishbowl), was an office suite behind a solid wall. The cafe was a presentation room – that’s where my final presentation was, behind a very unwelcoming solid door.
By opening up the first floor, and creating the cafe space the hope was to foster a sense of community, collaboration, friendships. The BAC today is a very different place from when I was a student here, and it’s amazing to see the space in action.
If we have had any part of the BAC community getting to know each other, learning from eachother, and reaching out to the community, then I consider that a success. It’s a joy to see the spaces we designed alive with great designers and design!
I hope these stories I’ve shared over the course of this series have given you a window into how even the smallest design move can have a tremendous impact on people, and that Interior Designers have a serious responsibility in our work.
Interior Design has always had a bit of an identity issue. But what we do is serious business – really important work. On that note, I’ll share one more story:
Interior Designers have been fighting to be a recognized profession since before I was a student. What that means to me personally is that although I con-founded and have had my firm for over 28 years, (and I hope you feel that I am pretty good at what I do) – I cannot be a majority owner of my firm, because the state of Massachusetts does not recognize Interior Design as a profession. That also means that we cannot be classified as a women owned business, which limits our opportunities. Most importantly I cannot call myself a “design professional” in my own state, and that hurts. Please contact me to talk about this further, including how to support our legislative efforts.
Whether you are an interior designer or a designer of any discipline – what we do affects people in a very direct way. If there was ever a time to care about every single person out there, that is now. Collectively we are a profession that has such a powerful impact on the future of people and communities!
I would love to continue the conversation and hear about your stories of impact! Reach out at fsilverman@sta-design.com!
