Reflections on Interior Architecture - 2nd Edition

"Thinking About Interior Architecture" is a book edited by Duygu Koca and published by YEM Publications. Its goal is to highlight the unique qualities of the interior architecture field and to ignite discussions and critical thought about this design discipline.

Duygu Koca, the editor of the book, which targets all designers and those who contemplate design, especially interior architects, interior architecture educators, and students, states the following in the preface:
“Interior architecture is a discipline that is highly open to thought, discussion, and artistic and scientific production, and is of great value. It stands precisely at the intersection of art and science, with its sphere of influence extending to both sides, and its boundaries becoming as blurred as possible at these points of contact. However, its goal is very clear: to improve the quality of life for living beings. To define it more precisely, it is a dynamic discipline that aims to enhance the quality of life for all living beings affected by a space, by combining aesthetic design and functional solutions with a focus on space. Therefore, defining the field is an important step in understanding the evolving and transforming process.
The foundation of this book is built upon revealing the inherent characteristics of the interior architecture profession and discussing its essentials. In other words, it addresses topics that, although they may be discussed in different disciplines, have their roots in interior architecture or could create significant turning points for the field of interior architecture. Of course, it is not possible to provide all ontological definitions of a well-established discipline encompassing many different areas of study within a single book. However, the purpose of this book is shaped by the hope of initiating the first spark to pave the way for deep discussions on the subjects that can make a profession a discipline…”

The chapters that make up the book and the topics they cover are summarized as follows:
The first chapter, “The Instantaneous and Spiritual Reality of Material”, written by Emre Demirel, focuses on the experience and sensory effects of material, and consequently the states of perception of space, in the reciprocal process between the intellectual formation and physical existence of the profession. The study discusses the potential for discovering innovative possibilities in interior spaces through the co-creation of material and space...
The first chapter, which includes a critique of contemporary space production through material, is followed by the second chapter by Sibel Aktekin, titled “Understanding a Discipline: Interior Architecture Criticism as a Witness of Time”, which explores the profession's close relationship with criticism. The study primarily focuses on the existence of a culture of criticism within the discipline, highlighting criticism as an important tool for understanding the evolution of interior design from past to present, evaluating cultural and social influences, and comprehending the development of interior architecture theories...
In the third chapter, “The Dual Dialogue of Space: Designer and User Communication”, Merve Özlek Kal reads the interaction of space with humans in a two-way manner, both through the design and the use/experience process. The study is based on the individual's perception of space and its elements, interaction with their surroundings, making sense of space and themselves, and the body's contact with its environment...
In the fourth chapter, “Interior Design and Art: Intuition and Inwardness in Creative Practices”, Ebrar Kuruçay Gök first highlights the reading of interior architecture through intuition and inwardness within the field of design and art. This study examines the argument that the similarities and differences between interior design and art, within the field named interior architecture in education and practice, are fundamentally about making sense of intuition and inwardness...
The fifth chapter, written by Servet Keleş, is titled “'Inner' Architecture”. The concept of inwardness, frequently read in the previous two chapters, has been seen as a dominant concept for forming the disciplinary definition of the field of interior architecture and has been defined as an inner dynamic that creates, sustains, develops, and expands interior space...
In the sixth chapter, “The Process of Space Becoming Place Through Human Scale”, İpek Şengül starts with the premise that scale is one of the subjective criteria unique to the field of interior architecture and reads the process of space becoming place through scale. The nature of the discipline-specific scale, its boundaries, and its potential to create and sustain space are discussed; the evolution of space from the physical and tangible to the semantic and abstract through scale is examined...
The user experience emphasized by the concept of place and scale is further highlighted in the next chapter by Deniz Kanlı, with the article titled “Sensory Evolution: Sensory Transformation of Virtual Spaces”. The emphasis in the previous chapters was on the relationship space establishes with different actors; senses, existence, and the multisensory dimension of existence. The experience mentioned specifically in this article is about the user's sensory experience with space...
The chapter titled “An Undefinable Concept in the Design Discipline as a Fault Line of Interior Architecture: Creativity” by Eren Yünür is structured to question the changing meaning of the concept of “creativity”, an important issue in disciplines such as design, art, and architecture, with digital transformation, and to explore its relationship with the interior architecture discipline...
In her final work, “The Breaking Point of Interior Architecture: Consumption”, Gülnihal Uğur aims to reveal how interior architecture is affected by this shift in values by examining periods when, with the increase in mass and individual consumption, not only objects but also all abstract and concrete values became objects of consumption...