What’s it all about?

The American Society of Interior Designers, the largest professional organization for interior designers, was founded in 1975, so 2015 marks the 40th anniversary of this great organization. The ASID is committed to the industry of interior design and is a community of designers, industry representatives, educators and students of interior design.

The purpose of the society is to promote the profession and communicate the impact of interior design to the well being of each person it impacts. It has developed and adopted a set of core values and strategic guideposts. ASID helps its members to excel in an ever-changing and vigorous profession with educational programs and support. The society encourages and requiresmembers to continue to learn and apply knowledge in the profession, thus supporting and creating a performance-oriented organizational culture.

ASID supports the interior design profession through knowledge sharing, advocacy, community building and community outreach. The interior design profession can have a positive impact on people’s lives through their environment and this is what professional interior designers want you to know. The society boasts more than 24,000 members in 48 chapters in the United States and Canada who engage in professional programs and a variety of activities.

In simple terms the impact that interior design has on our environment is, for the most part, taken for granted. I’ll offer a couple of examples that will cause some reflection on this. Think about going to a doctor’s office and howyou felt when you were there, especially in the waiting room. Was it well lit and well planned, functional and beautiful? It may have been poorly planned out, without adequate lighting and poor selections of furnishings and fabrics that had an impact on whether you felt good or bad.

Another business that we probably don’t put in the category as benefitting from interior design is the grocery store. I am thinking about a small neighborhood grocery in Santa Fe that has benefitted greatly by interior design. As a customer, it is a joy to visit Kaune’s Neighborhood Market and it must be a joy to work there— the quality of our environment affects both workers and end users. The design work was done by an interior designer and it is laid out in such a way that there is ample room to move around and find what you need, plus the space is light and bright and has a feeling of health. Each day when contemplating going to work, the employees of this store surely feel excited about spending a day in a beautiful and well functioning space.

Other local examples come to mind of spaces that evoke feelings of unhappiness and dread. Tremendous amounts of moneywerewasted on decorators rather than qualified interior designers and the results are unfortunately here to stay. There is a big difference between an interior designer and an interior decorator.

Lisa Samuel ASID, IIDA, is a Santa Fe native and principal of Samuel Design Group, located in the heart of downtown Santa Fe. She is an award-winning interior designer known for creating unique interiors imbued with warmth and elegance. Lisa (info@samueldesigngroup.com) is passionate about good design that supports well-being.

Thoughtful use of material for the various finishes is reflected in this photo. Architecture by Craig Hoopes, interior finishes by Lisa Samuel