Harnessing the Power of Design Elements to Shape Space and Mood in Interior Environments

Now we dive into the fun stuff, the design elements. And we're going to talk about the design elements and the design principles in this lesson. And I think it's important to note that these design elements can be used to not only create an amazing project, but they can be used to communicate that project with your client.

The six elements that I will focus on are line, shape, form, texture, color, and space. And I will dive into each of these and define each, and I will show you specific examples on how each of these can be used. Line.

What is line? Well, if you look at the simplicity of what line is, it's essentially just the connection between two points, right? The human eye perceives one edge, and then the eye moves to the second edge, right? So the connection between these two edges create what we call, you know, line. Now, what are the variations of line? Yes, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, or even curvilinear. Line can completely alter the way we experience space.

This is the powerful use of line. Now, how do designers use line to create meaningful projects? Well, they may want to draw the eye from one part of the interior to another intentionally, saying, this is the exit route, follow this line, right? That's a very literal way of approaching it. Or a project, which I'll show an example in just a second, may be used to create some sort of strength, or power, or even dominance.

And we'll all show an example of that in just a few seconds. To control the perception of the viewer, you know, you can make the space feel larger or smaller just by incorporating line. That's how powerful line can be.

And we can use the element of line to connect the building to the interior, and also exterior, and nature, right? I'll show a specific example of that in just a second. Curvilinear lines are actually used to soften a space, right? To make it less rigid. So making the experience feel more organic.

So wait, hold on, Rick. So what you're saying is that you can use a curved line to make a space organic? Yes, that is what I'm saying. And it is possible to use line in this fashion.

Let's look at this example for an example. Line for wayfinding. Wayfinding is how you navigate through the space.

And as beautiful as this project is, the direction of the line helps guide everyone in that space. So the functions are very clear as far as where you're going and where you need to go. This is a very common strategy within an interior design or interior architecture working together.

Now if we look at the towers, the twin towers, we can see that there was an intention of using line to create strength, right? We cannot be defeated and we will rebuild. You can't tell me that this doesn't symbolize strength, right? So line is much more powerful than you think. And you can use it to create a concept that can drive the project further.

It can create a connection to nature. Or it can soften the space itself, depending what your goal is. Frank Lloyd Wright was one of the most notorious architects ever.

He was known for designing what you see here, falling water. It was the first house ever built on a waterfall. And Frank Lloyd Wright looked at line as vertical and horizontal line.

That's the way he saw it. And the reason why he saw vertical and horizontal line is because that's what nature is. The trees and the horizon.

And this house used line to create a direct connection to nature. And I don't think I have to explain why. It's pretty apparent.

The project uses line to connect the individual with its surroundings. If this is possible, then we have an element, a very simple element that we can use to really become one with nature. It's pretty powerful.

Now let's look at the next design element. Let's look at shape. So shape occurs when multiple lines create an enclosure.

So you can see from the diagram on the top left, you know, four lines together may create a square or a rectangle. And those lines, once they are joined, now create what we call shape. Now, how can designers use shape? Well, each piece of furniture is composed of shape.

And each piece of furniture is different. So your selection is very important. Every single wall, floor, ceiling panel uses shape to define the area.

Shape is also very commonly used in textiles. And I'll show some examples of this. Shape can be used to create pattern.

And pattern plays a vital role in interior design. And we'll get into this when we start getting into the design principles. Now, shape can also control light exposure.

Yes, a shape can be used to control how much light is coming into the building. Shape can also be used to control mood. The size and scale of the interior design can drastically change depending on the selected shape, right? You can start to alter scale with how you incorporate shape.

Each interior is furnished. And all of those furnishings are composed of various shapes. And shape can be used to connect us to nature, just like we use the element of line.

Now, can elements overlap? Absolutely. Elements are created by overlapping with each other. And they work together to create interior design and architecture in general.

We'll look at a few examples here. So let's look at shape to create pattern, right? We see it daily, right? In our homes and hotels that we visit. And pattern is key, not only as an aesthetic element, but as a functional quality too, right? This is, you can clean this easily, right? There's a reason why porcelain is used in a bathroom or tile that can be easily cleaned, right? So it has a function to it as well.

Or maybe we're using shape to actually define an area, right? Shape here is actually used to create a privacy zone. And we'll dive into the distance zones in a couple lectures. So the power of shape can be used to actually assist you with designing the interior.

And as we can see here, the shape itself creates what we call a privacy zone. And that privacy zone allows for an individual to enjoy the space that you've designed. I said that shape can alter how light is filtered, right? Shape on this wall structure actually alters the way light comes into the space.

Now, believe it or not, there's a whole psychology, world of light psychology, and how the human brain reacts to these different patterns of light. And that's a whole other subject in itself. But just know that using shape is very powerful, and it can actually manipulate light coming into the building.

Now, let's look at what happens when shape starts to create form. Now, unlike shape, form is 3D, right? So form has mass. So you have to imagine a series of shapes that project up or down or out to create this three-dimensional quality.

And once you've got this three-dimensional quality, now you have form. So form is three-dimensional. Shape is two-dimensional.

So something to note is that form essentially displaces shape. Now, how can we as interior designers use this? Well, the scale of each form plays a vital role in all of the designs. And form can organize the interior design and create various zones, just like the zones for the shape that we showed earlier.

A form, if placed correctly, can create balance. The intelligent use of form in furniture can be organic. Form can be used to create cohesion, pulling the project together.

And form can contribute to productivity and health. We'll talk about that in a few minutes, too. Now, here we can say form creates unity.

Now, you say, okay, let's analyze this for a second, right? All of the forms in this shape vary from organic to rectilinear. However, the choice of form and the size of form unifies the project. It pulls the project together.

It's very powerful. Now, yes, there is line. There is shape.

And together, they work together to create form. But all in all, the form is used to pull the whole project together and to balance it. Here we may say that form is used for productivity or relaxation, right? So the chair itself is a form.

And that form is specifically used to be productive. You know, and not only to be productive, but to be the most productive. Designers now, like Knoll and Herman Miller, are designing chairs that are so ergonomic that they enhance your productivity.

But then if we look to the left, we see the Eames chair. And we say, oh, this form is actually used to create relaxation, right? So each form is completely different. And they also serve a different purpose.

Once you understand these basic design elements, you'll be able to create and design your own spaces. All right, the next element, the next design element is texture. Now, we have to think about texture as the relative roughness or smoothness of a surface, all right, used as an aesthetic element to balance interior design.

It also activates the touches or the senses, excuse me. So you have, you can use the sense of touch to activate the brain. And we'll talk about that in a second.

It can trigger experiences based off one's past. Think about this for a second. So what I'm saying is that texture, once we touch that texture, we use our senses, can actually trigger memories, whether they're good or bad.

That means that just using the element of texture can actually alter the way someone experiences a space altogether. Which is phenomenal. Texture can be used to connect us to nature as well.

In fact, all the design elements are with different strategies. You know, here we can say that texture is used to control mood, right? The use of texture softens the space. Now, texture is the relative roughness or smoothness in an object, right? So yes, the linens or the rug could be a soft texture.

And the wood could be a rough texture. Now, just so you understand, the glass on the window, even though it's super smooth to the touch, it's still technically as texture. Now, you're not going to go at a client and say, check out the smooth texture of this window, right? It's more referred to when we're looking at the relative smoothness or roughness of a surface like a rug or, you know, a shag rug, something like this.

But just so you understand, the quality of that surface, that's what creates texture. Texture can also be used to connect us with nature as well, while activating the senses. Biophilic design is a huge movement that's been happening.

And this is the connection to nature and using nature within the interior design to truly create a sustainable project. And so just the simple use of texture is not only controlling the light, it's controlling the mood. And we're altering the way people experience space.

Now, you have to remember, every person reacts to spaces differently. So it's complicated, right? We use what we call research or case studies to try to find the correct way to approach a project before we finish the project, because we know that whatever that theory is or that design aspect, it's worked in the past, right? So pattern and shape work together to create a connection to nature. Now, one of my favorite is the design element of color.

Now, perhaps this is one of the most influential elements, right? Color is the result of light reflecting off a surface. If we look at the technicalities of it, it can create an immediate feeling or experience. Has been used in conjunction with wellness.

Color, we hear about color psychology, right? Color and light psychology and blues calm and red stimulate, right? Think about red is also supposed to, you know, make an individual hungry. Think about all the fast food restaurants. What color do they use? Red.

Because there's a reason behind why that color makes us want to eat. Chromotherapy has been used to gain some momentum, and it's been used as a healing tool. Chromotherapy is using artificial light therapy, basically colored hues, for healing.

Now, we look at the characteristics of a color. It's made up of three parts. We have the hue, just so you're aware, which is the color name.

We have the value, which is how light or how dark the color is. And then we have intensity. And intensity is the degree of brightness.

Is it bright or is it dull? It's as simple as that. Now, all three of these things work together to create the powerful element of color. And yes, chromotherapy is used in interior design.

Chromotherapy is when colored light will flood over your body, affecting different chakras, and essentially improving your mood. Now, there's a lot of research that's still going on with this, and there's a lot of science that backs it, and there's a lot of question marks with it as well. But there is research that supports color, light psychology, light therapy, and chromotherapy.

Now, we can go the opposite realm of color and make things very subtle, right? And this is intentional. We create a subtle color palette because we just want balance, right? You know, this room in all red would be much different from what we're seeing here, right? This creates a sense of kind of subtle and relaxation, and there's no dominancy in trying to make the space pop or stand out. It's intentionally toned down.

And a lot of times, this is the best approach. It depends on your client. It depends on the space.

It depends on the function of what the space is supposed to be. Now, the last design element that we'll talk about is space. Now, space is an endless void.

And yes, you could think of space as outer space, right? But we're going to define it a little bit more. Enclosed spaces create various rooms within different functions for an interior designer. And I think when I show the examples, it'll make a little bit more sense.

But negative space can reveal a void. So imagine punching a hole through a wall. What happens to the wall? There's a void that's created.

That could be considered negative space. Now, open space is actually used to relieve anxiety. Designers do this.

Designers intentionally use floor-to-ceiling windows and open the entire space up because they want you to feel relaxed when you enter into that space. We can also use space to control direction. Wayfinding.

We talked about wayfinding. How we can understand how to get from one part of a building to another. And limited space can create confinement.

And believe it or not, there are projects that do this intentionally, right? Especially in museums. Now, here you can see that the circular negative space in the middle gives us an idea of direction. It tells us where to go, right? So this negative void, this negative space, actually tells us what the function of the space is, which is, you know, to move from an upper level or a lower level up to the upper level, right? And vice versa.

Now, one of the things I'm going to challenge you with your first assignment is to start using some of these elements to describe your environments, right? Or to describe inspirational environments. If I were going to use the word space in this particular image, I might say, you know, the circular negative space creates or gives the user a sense of direction. Right? Very simple.

And it sounds good. And it's also accurate. When you learn the elements and you learn the principles, what you're going to find is you can use them to describe the spaces around you.

And you just sound that much better when you're in front of your client explaining what you designed for them. Now, here you can see that space was used for or to create an employer lounge, right? This open space may also be used for relaxation or to create a space where someone can unwind. All right.

I look forward to having you in our next video, where we'll be discussing the design principles, which is another layer that support the design elements.