Fundamentals of Art and Design 3(1+2)

Lesson 01 : An Introduction to Art Design In Interiors

The Requirements for a good decorative design

Design should fulfill all of the following considerations

• The decoration must be used in moderation.
• The decoration must be placed at structural points and it should strengthen the shape of an object.
• There must be enough background space to give an effect of simplicity and dignity to a design.
• Surface pattern or design should cover the surface quietly.
• The background shapes should be carefully studied and as beautiful as the pattern placed against them.
• The decoration must be suitable for the material and for service it must give.

Example: Over all surface enrichment on pots and bowls. Creative art at structural points on object. Application work on a table cloth.

Types of Decorative Design

1. Naturalistic design
2. Conventional design/stylized design
3. Abstract design
4. Geometric design

1. Naturalistic design:
   Naturalistic motifs look like pictures, usually of flowers, fruits, animals, or scenesfrom nature (Fig.1.2). When the motifs are selected from nature and reproduced exactly it is called naturalistic decorative design. A realistic painting of a bouquet of flowers, leaves, naturalistic landscapes expressed in photographic or as in painting are more or less the exact expression of something that we see in nature. The applications of naturalistic design in interiors may be on pictures, wall papers, fabrics, paintings etc.


2. Conventional design/stylized design
   
   • Stylized motifs do not look like pictures of natural objects; usually the lines are simplified and conventionalized, sometimes they are distorted.
   • In stylized motifs, the form of leaves, flowers, animals, fruits are used, but they are conventionalized/stylized.(Fig 1.3)
   • Even the form and color can be conventionalized.
   • Applications of stylized designs include floor finishes, carpets, furnishing materials, wall papers, pictures etc.
   • Patterns are sometimes made as a combination of stylized and geometric motifs.

Ex: Stylized design of a peacock, duck, human being etc.

3. Abstract design:
   
   • A combination of lines, stripes etc. are classified as abstracts designs. Plaids, dots, stripes, checks and geometric pattern in textiles are examples of abstract design.(Fig 1.4)
   • These designs may be flat design or it may express depth, with two or three dimensional figures and objects.
   • In modern art, the applications of abstract designs are widely used.
   
   
4. Geometric design:
   • Geometric motifs are based on the pure forms of the circle, rectangle, triangle, stripes, dots, checks, plaids etc, although endless variations and combinations of them are used to create designs. (Fig 1.5)
   • Their beauty is derived from either elegance of proportions or their arrangement in relation to other shapes in a composition. Geometric designs are widely used in crockeries, floor coverings, wall papers, furnishing items, wall hangings, picture etc.
   • Modern designers prefer geometric motifs in the small amount of pattern that they use.