Interior Design for Commercial Spaces

Objectives
The aim is for students to have closer contact with the professional world and to acquire the necessary tools to tackle the heterogeneity and diversity of programmes and places encompassed within the field of interior design.

The end result is not an objective in itself, but a vehicle for providing the student with the knowledge and tools necessary to handle any type of multidisciplinary project in the future. Participants will have to develop the ability to plan and understand the stages of the work process, by alternating both aspects.

The course is centred predominantly on research, learning a methodology, and project process.The course also draws on the students’ diverse backgrounds in order to further enhance the group’s knowledge.

Methodology
Through work carried out during the Master, we will address the issue of commercial space not as an abstract construction, but as a commentary on reality. We will develop projects that are highly realistic and form part of the debate on the regeneration and design of the city. The projects will be supported by lectures and data provided by the City Council’s Department of Architecture.

The teaching methodology proposes projects that define the place in three ways:
1_ The physical space in which they are carried out.
2_ The “present” in relation to its historical situation.
3_ The social reality and therefore issues that concern citizens.

At the end of each stage, the student will present their work thoroughly, including the different disciplinary knowledge they have acquired.The aim of the seminars and workshops is to reinforce the theoretical approach to subjects that make up the content of the project and provide the backbone of the work process.

Students Profile
All students admitted must have a qualification in one of the following areas: Architecture, Engineering, Interior Design, Product Design, Graphic Design, Visual Arts, Landscaping, Social Sciences.During the project process, the Master promotes group work as a learning methodology: two or more students, with different experiences, who are able to manage the proposals will be better prepared for the reality of professional practice, and it also makes the course more realistic.

For this reason, the Master course values the fact that students have different qualifications, as this enhances the interdisciplinary peculiarity of the projects.

Professional Opportunities
The Master students will have acquired sufficient knowledge for them to be able to integrate different disciplines from the design world into their projects:
_Architecture: the project method starts with a physical and historical analysis of the place.
_Interior design: understood as a continuation, an extension of the exterior space; avoiding “fancy solutions”, and seeking spaces with atmosphere and imbued with their own particular character.
_Product design: the ability to use detail or an object as a project matrix, whether for its modular, geometric or fractal capacity.
_Graphic design: the Master addresses the concept of “brand”; each project is associated with a user’s creation, which results in a corporate brand, the packaging, and other visual elements.

Coordinators
The coordinators of the Master support the choice of the teaching team, all of them professionals with extensive experience, and associated with prestigious institutions and organisations in their fields of expertise.We have the participation of prominent international professors and speakers, who will explain to students the different approaches to designing contemporary interior spaces.

Josep Ferrando
Architect. Combines design and construction with his teaching activities.Since 1998 he has taught classes and lectures in different universities in Europe, America and Asia. His work has been exhibited in several countries including the United States, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, and Portugal.