Good Design/ Bad Design

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when

there is nothing left to take away were the words of the French writer and Poet, Antoine de Saint-

Exupéry. All excellent designs start with a story, and all finished designs continue to tell their

story throughout their lifetime. Design is a dualistic endeavor where the designer ends up with

either an excellent design or a poor design. Steve jobs added to the definition of design to include

the functional aspect of a product or a good. The design creates a culture that shapes the values

of any society. Apart from determining the future, these values with their uniqueness act as a

chronological timestamp that can accurately predict the nature of a time or a society. Before a

person fully develops to understand the whys of things, objects, and systems, their minds are

very simplistic.

Either playing with toys or dolls, I wanted them to be in a certain color, and blending them with

another made them even appeal more to my eyes. Be it the “color me” part in a drawing book,

the most creative endeavors in my playful-like childhood gave me the most satisfaction. Little

did I know that the choices I made behind the simple tasks of combining primary colors,

decorating my toys have a complex scientific basis.

I have lived in Laurel Canyon for quite some time now. The central thoroughfare of Laurel

Canyon is Laurel Canyon Boulevard, which connects the neighborhood with the more urbanized

parts of Los Angeles to the north and south. Laurel Canyon has houses lining one side of the

main street to Mulholland Drive, unlike other neighboring canyon communities. Many side roads

branch off the main canyon, but the majority are not through streets, emphasizing the
Good Design/ Bad Design

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

neighborhood’s self-contained existence. Mount Olympus, Kirkwood, Wonderland Avenue,

Willow Glen, and Lookout Mountain Avenue are some of the major side streets. A stroll around

my neighborhood will fill one with a sense of balance and harmony. Be it the beautiful green

lush of nature or the vernacular-designed structures. The variety in architecture, landscaping

design blend cohesively to create a beautiful ambiance that projects peace and calmness. I’m

awed and thrilled at the sight of the exterior; the façade, the fenestrations, the finials. This sparks

curiosity in my soul about the interior as well, whether its aesthetics matches the magnificence of

the exterior modest but impeccable elements. I have been to some of these houses and I would

argue that they don’t match the panache of the exterior. Most of the areas where I noticed they

lacked were on the basic principles of balance, proportion, and ergonomics. They have failed to

meet the perfect marriage between form and function.

The significance of the entry door’s form and functionally can never be overstated. We know it

as the “mouthpiece” of the home because of the integral role it plays in welcoming people into

the home. However, it does far more than that. The door is more than just an entrance into a

home. It plays a key role in the safety of your home, its appearance, and security. Doors open

fast and close slow though some I witnessed did quite the opposite. For instance, the front door

entrance sport two blue-colored plant vases with dry-leaved plants placed next to each other with

an orangish-colored main door. The two colors in use here do not complement each other, hence

exude a feeling of dissonance. The plants on the vases look neglected and exude the air of

lifelessness and wear instead of nurture, we associate which nature.

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

Every time I walk down the street there’s

this beautiful house that always captivates

me. The design of the house is eclectic

though it overly carries Spanish overtones in

its aesthetics. It feels like it was influenced

by the Spanish who settled around this area

over a century ago. The walls are pastel pink

and have carefully placed and detailed

ornaments for accentuation. One takeaway

though from this thing of beauty is the door

that leads to the backlot which right next to

the street in the glare of the public. The odd

combination of pink, green and yellow plastered

over the door disorienting the whole design and

eventually look and feel. The door is made of

wood blocks with ornaments glued on it to add detail and depth. All the ornaments are of

different hues against the backdrop of a light pink door that seems unaligned and chaotic. The

door does possess clear functional affordance as the doorknob implies the door is opened by

pulling the doorknob handle. The door’s size feels disproportionate to the whole house. The door

is unpleasant as it leans towards function over form. It exudes a notion that it primarily there for
Good Design/ Bad Design

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

security other than being a gateway to the home. I feel that the door should have been designed

to work as a fence. Given the opportunity, I would redesign it and an additional fence to it for

separation. The idea behind making the house beautiful and lively by adding incongruent details

which are unaligned and are not complimentary color-wise is not working with this house.

Wooden material could work.

Our house’s architecture is inspired by the Swiss chalet style of 18th century Rome. It’s not

entirely made out of wood and has a heavy sloping roof supported by wide caves set at right

angles in front of the house. At the front, the door is simple and somewhat feels like it is a

mismatch to the overall architecture and design of the home. The doorknob is basic and silverish

at both ends with some finely detailed curves for a perfect grip. The knob is however could be a

little bit higher than its current placing. The color of the door is yellow on the outside which is

not harmonious to the colors of the caves. The door’s size is perfect for a house of this size with

a very intriguing entrance. The glass details on the side of the door add to this interest with

beautifully aligned patterns which allows light to pass through it to create very beautiful ambient

soft light which illuminate the interior décor. I think this glass material should have been

considered for the whole front door instead of the yellow color which is not cohesive with the

overall exterior.

The door functions as expected with a peep-hole which is a detailed modern addition to the

design of the door. The door is wanting in terms of details, artfulness and I’d swap it for a more

exciting and ornate door.

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

I have always likened chairs to a very good friend who offers their shoulder to lean on, comfort,

and solace. Chairs bring a sense of style and character to the interior or a landscape. A good chair

successfully combines aesthetics and function.

Chairs are expressive, they express the culture

and age that they were created, and also the

character of the owner. Chairs compared to all

other furniture interact with its user the most.

There are two chairs in our home, one is in the

kitchen and the other in the backyard. The

contrasting designs in both these chairs

elucidate the tenets of great design and a not-

so-great one. The chair in the kitchen is tall

and very spacious anyone of any size or height

can sit comfortably on it. Its black color makes

it blend in the kitchen seamlessly as it matches its surroundings harmoniously. The detailed

cursive engraving patterns on the back give it a deceptive feeling that it might hurt the back

that’s far from the truth. The acrylic patterns wrap around the back perfectly feeling very good to

the skin. This added to the fact that the chair gets a little bit warm after using for a while creates

a pleasant emotional experience.

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

The chairs in the backyard are red and

made of plastic. They are not the best

backyard chairs I’ve seen but at least they

are functional. The red details to our back

porch make it a little bit more pleasing. The

chairs try to mimic the aesthetics of

wooden materials terribly. The u-formed

chairs are very difficult to get up from a

sitting position and are very uncomfortable.

Their height is also questionable hence it

does not communicate their intent of the

design. They look awkward at the back

porch and cannot be used at the dinner table as they force one to sit up straight. They are too

uncomfortable to be sun chairs and are also too wide for small spaces. The arms rest is a bit high

and the chair too wide hence the arm tends to feel a little fatigue after placing them for long.

My favorite place in the entire house is the

living room. It exudes vibrance, peace, and

modern ambiance. The sofa in the living room

is a perfect creation of ergonomics and interior

design. The contemporary interior design style,

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

which I’m a huge lover of influences it. The design is simple, smart, and very comfortable. It’s

also very functional, as I can adapt it into a variety of settings. Its size is perfect with warm color,

made from wood and leather that feels very good on the skin. The back part can be ejected and

placed diagonally to adjust the sitting position or removed to rest the head against the main area.

The sofa can be separated or moved closer together for one’s convenience and liking which has

driven me to love this design even more. Styles come and go. Good design is a language, not a

style.
Good Design/ Bad Design

Lina Beijerstam

Fundamentals of Interior Architecture

UCLA 2021

REFERENCES

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/interior-design-basics#5-interior-design-tips

https://www.collaborativepractice.com/system/files/2%20-%20Elements%20of%20Interior

%20Design.pdf

Dodsworth, S., & Anderson, S. (2015). The fundamentals of interior design. Bloomsbury

Publishing.