Interior as “living machine”: connecting ecology and interior

This paper describes an agenda of an interior architecture school to strengthen ecological dimension in interior architecture design practice. Rather than seeing ecology as a set of environmental contexts and constraints that the design practice should comply with, ecology is positioned as the primary starting point from which design ideas could be generated. The idea of seeing interior as “living machine” becomes the starting point of understanding ecology as the interiority of the context. Understanding interior as “living machine” means exploring how the ecological system works in a certain context, how the elements of the system form a dialog with one another – the dialog between the animate and the inanimate, the built and the natural, the part and the whole, the small and the large, the dynamic and the static. Interior as “living machine” includes the dynamic of the living processes that are embedded in an interior context, as natural processes that are important to ensure the good living of all the inhabitants. It also suggests the importance of every single element and event within the living processes, and this requires an ability to see interior and its elements in a more detailed and systematic way. The idea of interior as “living machine” could open up various possibilities of injecting ecological dimensions into an interior context. It promises the emergence of fresh, ecologically-appropriate ideas on how interior should be defined, developed and materialized. This approach offers an important contribution from interior architecture education to promote more responsible design practice.