History of Interior Design

As people began spending more of their lives indoors, interior design and architecture grew in artistic importance. Sophisticated materials, design elements and new ideas about space and light became worthwhile as fewer people relied on physical work in the fields. That's why interior design first emerged in more advanced societies, and why creative explosions in interior architecture often coincided with golden ages. Here's an overview of how it has evolved over time.

Greek and Roman Interiors

Greek and Roman interiors were built around symmetry, proportion and the classical orders of columns. Wealthy homes were decorated with marble, painted frescoes and intricate floor mosaics, and their ideas about proportion have shaped Western design ever since.

Gothic and Medieval Design

Buildings sanctioned by divine authority were designed to inspire spiritual awakening or provide a peaceful setting for meditation and prayer. Patrons sponsored the best masters and craftsmen, who carved, painted and built some of the most elaborate designs in human history, and wealthy individuals were eager to associate their names and fortunes with works made for the glory of God.

The ecosystem between institutions, patrons and artists made places like Italy, France and Spain (then partly under Muslim rule) cradles of innovative, breathtaking architecture. Materials varied, but the Western European style was characterized by dark wood and stone, with marble in some landmarks such as Milan Cathedral. Color palettes varied too: the north favored black-and-white contrast, while the south embraced many secondary colors.

Baroque

"Baroque" comes from the Portuguese word barroco, meaning an irregularly shaped pearl. Baroque interiors often play on contrast, overwhelming the viewer with light or darkness, sharpness or softness. Artists experimented with shapes, materials and volumes, inventing new ways to lay out an interior. The style found its fullest expression in Mediterranean countries and in the New World, where Spanish colonial Baroque defines many historic settlements in the Americas.

Over time, Baroque influenced the Neoclassical style, especially in Britain. In the mid-18th century, Robert Adam worked within neoclassical frameworks while weaving in decorative elements such as ribbons, medallions and still-life imagery.

Neoclassical

The Neoclassical approach was prominent in France and the United Kingdom but less so elsewhere. In industrial northern Italy, the Liberty style, Italy's take on Art Nouveau, emerged instead. While its structure stayed classical, notably in its use of symmetry, it incorporated Baroque elements and the Greco-Roman fascination with floral motifs and mythological scenes.

Art Deco, Futurism and Pop Art

Art Deco and Futurism defined the early 20th century, but neither survived the Second World War intact: Art Deco came to be seen as vulgar, and Futurism as grim. Growing European integration and the spread of the American way of life helped shape a new idea of style in Europe.

Scandinavian design, with Danish and Swedish firms gaining worldwide recognition, set the pace for an approach focused on creating an experience and a mood rather than simple function. Then, with the influence of pop art in the 1960s and '70s, designers began experimenting with color, materials, shapes, volumes, textures and structure like never before. Plastic and the rise of consumerism created opportunities at every level to make art and innovate.

Design Reflects Its Time

Design languages have always varied with the materials available, technological capabilities, cultural preferences and geographic needs. And because the elites built the most durable structures, their social and cultural backgrounds were displayed through interior design and architecture, both to give concrete form to abstract ideas like God, nature or ancestry and to set the pace for the rest of society.

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