Celebrating 50 Years of Inventive Interior Design

Pictured: iFarm by Meray Rofail (B.F.A. ’16). Senior thesis project under the instruction of Associate Professor Robert Allen.

Half a century ago, Johanna (Han) Schröder founded the interior design program at NYIT. To celebrate the program’s golden anniversary, the Department of Interior Design hosted a series of events, design talks, and special exhibitions, including an all-day symposium at the AIA Center for Architecture in New York on October 19.

“It is rewarding to reflect back on 50 years and remember Han Schröder and the legacy she started back in 1967,” said Martha Siegel, associate professor and chair of Interior Design. Schroeder was a pioneer in her field. After World War II, she was only one of two independent female architects among the nearly 3,000 registered male architects in the Netherlands. Her ideas about design and teaching philosophy still inspire students in the program.

The anniversary symposium featured industry leaders speaking about how architecture, interior design, engineering, and construction are at crossroads due to digital processes, information technologies, and the opportunities they afford to collaborate. Talks focused on the impact of these platforms on design and construction, future use of blockchain technology in financing projects, and gaming to enhance visualization of interior spaces. Presenters included Michael Donaghy, Structure Tone; John C. Cronin III, OpCenter; Lucas Richmond, Gilbane Building Company; and Michael Koutsoubis (B.Arch. ’14) and Andy Christoforou (B.Arch. ’14), Mythic VR.

The day ended with a keynote presentation, followed by roundtable table discussions held at NYIT Auditorium on Broadway and featuring renowned designers Adam Tihany (Tihany Design) and Giorgio Borruso (Giorgio Borruso Design), and Lauren Adams, director of Strategy at Gensler, a global architecture, design and planning firm. The discussions were moderated by Carl Matthews, head of Interior Design, Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design, Fayetteville, Ark., and Melanie Li (B.F.A. ’12), senior project manager at Flag Luxury Group LLC.

In addition to the events on the 19th, a select group of interior design students were invited to display their projects at the exhibit Connect, Master, and Compete held at the AIA Center for Architecture from October 16 to 22. An opening reception on October 16 gave guests a chance to see work and mingle with students, alumni, and faculty members.

“These days of celebration were rich and rewarding,” said Siegel about the week-long celebration. “They were rich in information about the profession and how technology is changing the way we work, and rich in sharing projects of some of today’s top designers and demonstrating how they approach a problem and the dynamic end product. It was rewarding to view stimulating, thoughtful student thesis projects from the program, and rewarding to visit with alumni and have them interact with students and faculty.”