True talent waits for no one and this is why students are currently being encouraged to take a hands-on approach to the interiors and design industry by creating cutting-edge works from their early education. Two of them tell Ramona Depares about the inspiration behind one of their recent university projects.
Maria Mallia
How did your interest in home interiors start?
My interest started years ago, when I would try to picture what area I wanted to work in. Interiors was always at the back of my mind; the job was new to Malta as a fully-fledged profession. But I still wanted it badly. My interest in design isn’t limited to interiors, but exends to fashion too. In fact, I currently form part of the Kirei European Top Models Malta team, a group that offers fashion-related design services both in Malta and abroad.
What are the key characteristics of this particular project you’re showcasing?
The concept reflects my own character. It focuses on bright colours, which are very ‘me’, and utilises recycled materials – something I strongly believe in.
How did the idea come about?
My interest in design isn’t limited to interiors, but extends to fashion too
I believe design is a development process. You get a sliver of an idea, you find inspiration in something and from there... you move on to something bigger, you start sketching, you develop the idea further and before you know it, you are working on a full concept.
In this case, I was inspired by the idea of mixing raw materials such as wood palettes with bright block colours.
What were the biggest challenges to finish it?
The project was finished in two months. The biggest challenges involved translating the concept into a workable project by constructing it into a 3D model, using the relevant programmes. Rendering, which is part of the perfecting process, takes a lot of time.
Chiara Darmanin
How did your interest in home interiors start?
I have always enjoyed using unusual materials that no one else would ordinarily think of
I got really into it after I needed to design an outdoor verandah area. Before this, I wasn’t quite sure it was the subject for me, but after I worked on that particular project, which included three exhibition spaces, it became clearer to me how much I loved interior design. When working on exhibition spaces, you can really give yourself free rein to think outside the box. You can take more of a risk and create something extraordinary. That was the impetus I needed.
What are the key characteristics of this particular project you’re showcasing?
For starters, there is the unusual stalactite effect, which identifies the style immediately. This project entailed working at an extremely low budget and I have always enjoyed using unusual materials that no one else would ordinarily think of. I did a lot of web research for objects that have a very low cost and I came across these beautiful ‘chandeliers’ made out of used, sprayed, plastic bottles, which serve as highly original lighting fixtures that create the whole roof.
How did the idea come about?
Being only a concept, there is no construction to it. Yet, this was the fastest project I have worked on, with only one to two weeks leeway to finish. It took about a week to come up with the idea, three days to create it on 3D and another two days to render the images.
What were the biggest challenges to finish it?
Because there are so many surfaces, the rendering took extremely long. Two days is too long for this part of the process; other students, in fact, finished their renders in a few hours, while mine took approximately 36 hours, using multiple computers.