Adjusting Our Designs To Your Culture

Culture has a large influence on interior design because it affects our perception of colors, textures, and aesthetic as a whole. Since culture differs from country to country, interior designers have to look at how culture can influence a design. 

Culture greatly affects our perception of color. Perceptions of color vary from place to place, and have different meanings around the world. For example, red evokes excitement, urgency, and love in Western cultures yet is associated with purity in India where the brides wear red wedding dresses. Green is associated with the environment, progress, and luck in Western cultures, but is regarded as forbidden in Indonesia. Orange is associated with mourning and loss in the Middle East but represents love and courage in Japan. These different meanings affect what colors a company would want to include depending on where they are from. 

“Designs can be created to capture a certain sense of place, history, and identity. For example, the use of bright colors and bold shapes in African textiles can signify cultural beliefs and traditions. Other cultural elements that may be presented in design are language, religious symbols, folklore, traditions, and customs.” – Augustine Grumbles from Home Design Institute

by Augustine Grumbles from Hone Design Institute

Designers from Business of Home made the observation of how the interior design of a country is influenced by elements of history, weather, and location. For instance, Mexico is often influenced by colorful folklore and patterns, Australia is inspired by elements from nature, and India has a strong artisan-designer relationship. 

Every country has its own culture and it is important to learn about it when working on international projects.

Articles used:

https://homedesigninstitute.com/question/1433/how_does_culture_affect_design
http://eriksen.com/marketing/color_culture/