Paperback
140 illustrations
200 pages
246 x 172
ISBN 978 1 85669 756 9
$29.95
Published August 2011
Contents
Preface
Introduction
The Search for Shelter
Being
Inside
Design
Epilogue
Endnotes
Further Reading
Index
Picture credits and acknowledgments
Reviews Post Comments Books by the same author Inspection Copy Available
The world and the people living in it are increasingly and rapidly being affected by environmental and technological changes. It is imperative that the design profession address these developments with a new way of thinking. This book points the way for the design of interiors in this newly complex world and will be indispensable for students, practitioners and theoreticians.
The book is divided into four chapters that explore aspects of the human experience of the interior, from man’s earliest search for shelter to an outline of past and current thinking on design, psychology and well-being. An epilogue looks at such future concerns as population growth and sustainability and suggests how the design profession can confront these challenges.
Rethinking Design and Interiors is a fascinating exploration of how art and science can come together for the benefit of those who inhabit the built environment.
Shashi Caan was Chair of Interior Design at Parsons in New York from 2002 to 2006. She is a founder and principal of The Collective (a US and UK-based design and interiors practice). At the forefront of advocating the role of design in society, Caan is President of the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers (IFI) and a former Chair and current Executive Committee member of the International Design Alliance (IDA).
This title is available as an e-book from the following providers:
CourseSmart (available in the US only)
'Caan locates design and interiors at the intersection of some of the most challenging issues facing society today and in the process unleashes the vast transformative potential of human imagination to build a better world.'
Joel Towers, Executive Dean, Parsons The New School For Design
'Shashi Caan has created a panoramic inquiry into the practice of interior design/architecture with a compelling voice for understanding how we shape space and how space fundamentally shapes the human experience. Rethinking Design and Interiors reveals the historical continuum of the philosophy, psychology, poetics and alchemy of design, what it means, and why it matters to all of us.'
Deborah Patton, Founder and Executive Director of Applied Brilliance
'In this extraordinary book, Shashi Caan makes a persuasive case for design as the driver of the new thinking essential for tackling the overarching issues of our time. Beautifully and intelligently illustrated, this study takes us on a journey through the history of our complex interaction with the spaces we inhabit, and makes a compelling argument for designers, artists and scientists to work in collaboration to create the blueprint for a more responsible and sustainable environment and our future collective well-being.'
Prof. Ian Howard Principal , Edinburgh College of Art.
Brillant book
27/06/2011
This brilliant book justifies the central and perhaps originary place of interior design among the design disciplines, arguing the historical and philosophical case for the unique knowledge, skills and sensibility of the interior designer.
by Mark Breitenberg, President, International Council of Societies of Industrial Design
Challenging, Inspiring and Unforgettable
27/06/2011
Shashi Caan brilliantly proposes, and superbly justifies, a radical, liberating, inside-out redesign of interior design and its consequent extension of the reach and power of all the design professions as her vision for their shared goal becomes the enhancement of humanity's well being. Reading this book is a challenging, inspiring and unforgettable experience, leaving the reader with new excitement and hope for the future.
by Richard Farson, Psychologist, author and President of the Western Behavioural Sciences Institute
Enlightens our understanding
27/06/2011
Caan enlightens our understanding of human behaviors and provokes us to think deeply about the ways people’s needs shape their interior environments. Educators globally must take note of the changes to design education this referenced book will suggest…and how that new education will shape the future, value, and prominence of the design professions in the built environment community.
by Denise Guerin, Interior Design Programme Chair
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