Our day-to-day life spends inside a physical structure made out of bricks, cement, and iron. It has become a part of ourselves, it has a huge impact on our mood and emotions. These spaces are planned, designed, and created by architects and interior designers. As demanding these professions are, as much they confuse people with their overlapping nature. Let’s dig in and find out how distinct these professions are.
Architects deal with the creative design and structural problem-solving and for the exteriors of buildings and structures while interior designers focus more on the aesthetics and design of the interiors. The notion and in fact, the myth of architecture and interior design is synonymous with each other has been around for years. Many consider them to be the same when in fact, the two are completely different fields of work.
Interior designers focus on aesthetic aspects of the interiors of buildings and structures, working to design and revamp spaces and rooms. They undertake the design project from concept to completion along with interpreting and translating customer needs into rough plans. They also set costs and project fees according to budget along with researching and deciding on materials and products sourcing. They work closely with designers, decorators, architects, and constructors and research and follow industry changes, evolutions, and best practices.
On the other hand, architects focus more on the technical aspects, handling and managing the exteriors of buildings and structures. They use their expertise to evaluate their client’s expectations and needs and then develop ideas for the structure. They also confer with other architects and designers to create a design plan to present to the client.
After the completion of Architectural studies, one can become a Structural Engineer, Town Planner, Architectural technologist, and more. landscape architecture is also one of the growing fields, which is a viable career option for an Architect.
Career opportunities in Interior Design include Exhibition Designers, Visual Merchandisers, Lighting Designers, Production designers. One can go out of the box and work as an industrial designer as it involves creative and artistic skills to design various products, including interiors like furniture.
The employment of architects is projected to grow 3 percent from 2020 to 2030, slower than the average for all occupations. Despite limited employment growth, about 9,400 openings for architects are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Most of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labour force, such as to retire. The market has shifted to the residential sector. Nearly 2 in 5 architecture firms (35%) are seeing an uptake in residential work coming in the New Year.
On the other hand, the interior design market is expected to see exponential growth by 2025 globally. According to a survey, in 2018, the interior design industry was estimated to be 130,100 million USD and expected to grow at a swift rate of 8.5% between 2019 – 2024, leading the market to be valued at 212,300. Interior design jobs are expected to see an estimated increase of 13% in the next decade. Going by the increasing number of people opting for interior design, the demand for interior designers is bound to significantly increase in the years to come.
Architects are responsible for the structure and facade of a building. They determine how it will look and where vital building systems will be located. Interior designers bring things into a space to make it functional or appealing. They choose things like furniture and arrange the materials that are used to design rooms. Architects and interior designers both need to be familiar with building codes, their client’s needs, and the project budget. They are like two sides of the same coin, working in tandem to create and design buildings and structures. They complement each other and go hand in hand.
Interior Design is a niche in the design market that is recently picking up and exponentially growing due to the growth of population, increase in real estate business, changing perspectives, and need of the hour. Architecture on the other hand is holistic and traditional that aims to cover all aspects of design and structure.