This fascinating collection provides a chronologically arranged set of
case studies looking at how interior design has constantly redefined
itself as a manifestation of culture, from the eighteenth-century to the
present day.
The book looks at the amateur activities of female 'home makers' in
search of creative outlets and married couples seeking to modernise
their homes as well as the contributions of early professional (female)
'interior decorators', and later, (male) 'interior designers'. It also
considers the more anonymous role of commercial enterprises, such as
hairdressing salons, ocean-going liners or modern offices as well as
public institutions, such as hospitals or naval training establishments.
Interior design and identity examines interior design in relation to the
changing identities of its practitioners, its inhabitants and of the
furnishings, focussing on the ways in which cultural values came to be
embedded in the spaces which people inhabited and made their own. Issues
relating to interiority, gender, and the relationship of the public
sphere are also considered opening up a new level of design historical
enquiry.