The form is one of the seven elements of interior design. You cannot imagine your home to be complete without its proper utilization. Overall is really important that you manage to achieve the right form at the end.
What is Form in interior design? The form is nothing but a shape that is, in fact, the very basis of any interior design. It provides a basic outline of the three-dimensional thing or object in space. You can achieve it by combining one or more shapes which are further enhanced by adding other elements such as patterns, colors, and textures.
In the above picture, you can see a very popular design model and a great example of a nice shape called Ghost chair. You can find them on Amazon as well. See the price here.
Learn and read more about different types of forms and what do you need to do in order to achieve good form.
What is Form and Different Types?
As we mentioned above shortly, forms are shapes and shapes are the outlines of the three-dimensional space in which an object or objects in a room exist. As such the Form or outline of the space is an absolute requirement and is the beginning of any project.
Without knowing or determining the form, it is not possible to prepare the design.
It includes the length, breadth, height, mass, as well as volume. It can be measured from its length and breadth and from top to bottom. All these measurements are necessary while preparing the design.
The form also does include the presence of the light and dark and is defined by the presence of different shades, shadows on the face and the surfaces of the objects.
They can either be an independent shape or can be created by combining two or more shapes. And enhancements in the form can be done by adding texture or a tone.
Forms can be of many types which are as follows:
- Organic – It refers to the form that is created or exists in nature in its natural living form such as a tree or a shrub; an outline created by the same.
- Geometric or Inorganic – It pertains to the man-made, geometric shapes and forms which implies it includes non-living forms.
- Open Forms – These forms are the forms or the outlines that you can look at and are visible to the naked eyes.
- Closed Forms – These are the forms that are self-contained and are not visible to the naked eye.
But how does your interior designer ensure that he will achieve a good form?
To achieve a good form, your interior designer must ensure that all the elements of interior design are appropriately used and blended together with the Form itself.
For achieving the final key principle – creating overall Harmony, mastering all 7 elements won’t be enough. Besides elements you need to incorporate and think about all 7 principles of interior design threw all design processes. The final result will be the hopefully perfect design.
Sound overwhelming? It is mostly not. Big part of all design proces will be about your sense of beauty and putting things on right spot. Better your sense is, easier and faster you will achieve client’s demands.
I see bigger problem in communication with investors / client’s about all the details. Some just don’t want to listen but at the same time they hire you for your opinion. My advice for all investors: Get to know your designer well before hiring him/her. Don’t hire a traditional oriented designer if you want minimalism. After you hire, learn to trust!
Why Form Should Follow Function in Interior Design?
This is a common approach in interior design that is usually adopted by most interior designers. The form or outline of a building should obviously be defined as per the function of the building.
They both are interdependent and while designing interior designers need to understand this. As such while designing the interior designer will have to consider the function of the space in question and accordingly the outline of the space can be drawn and accomplished.
Example – if we think of an indoor sports stadium. The function would be to create a space for many spectators to watch a game or a sporting event. The form of the stadium would then be a big area in the middle surrounded by seating arranged in a step manner.
So that is the basic form of the stadium to facilitate the function of allowing thousands of spectators to watch a game at one time. A designer of the stadium will then have to work with this basic form considering the function that it would be used for.
Similarly, when it comes to designing your home interiors your interior designer will have to keep in mind the function of the space or the area to be designed.
The utility of the space needs to be first figured out so that the form can be determined after.
For instance, if you go to the kitchen for breakfast or tea as soon as you wake up, the kitchen then has to be placed as close to the bedroom as possible. The function or the purpose in this case that the design will be serving is your habit of getting into the kitchen directly out of bed and the form, in this case, has to be according to this function.
Interior designers, therefore, would need to factor the functional requirements in their forms when they are preparing the designs. You need to ask yourself about your habits and speak with your designer. This way your Form will always follow functions.
A form that is unable to facilitate a function is not deemed to be a good form. Example: If the kitchen is not designed and placed near the front door, you will need to carry your grocery bags each Day on the other side of your home.
Find perfect Balance between Form and Function
While form should be complementing the function of your home, too much of functional design with no form or vice versa can mar the entire charm of the design. So, the idea is to find a perfect balance between the two.
What is Abstract in Interior Design?
An abstract is a form of art. This art has been really popular amongst artists and painters who love to put it up on their canvases and the same is now increasingly getting popular in interior designing as well.
But what is this abstract art form and how is it derived?
Behind every abstract art, there is a cluster of ideas that are often more theoretical than practical. The ideas appear good in theory but often cannot be put down on paper and are applicable. But the aim of these ideas is to always create pure sublime art. An art that is beautiful and exists to create those beautiful effects.
The interior designers off late have taken a leaf out of the book of the idea of the abstract art forms and when applied to the interior designs masterpieces are created. This art may not be anything that is comprehensible but with the use of the right elements a beautiful piece of artwork comes into existence. It ends up being the main attraction in the room or any space.
Final Words
To conclude we can say that Form is certainly one of the basic elements of interior design and to achieve the best form some or all other elements and principles of interior design needs to be effectively used. Form, however, is not independent of the function of the room and as such the form has to solve the purpose or the function of the room.
The idea is to balance the form and function by leveraging the various elements. And if some amount of abstract art is added to the design, it can transform your ordinary living space into a masterpiece.
