There is a less than a week for the most impressive projects from designers, architects, investors and visual specialists to become part of the Bulgarian annual awards for interior design Dibla Design Awards. The enlisted interiors will be assessed by a 16-member international jury, and the winners would be crowned at an award ceremony held on November 22 in Sofia Event Center.
During the final countdown, we present you a brief interview with Yvonne Toader – an architect and designer, born in Bucharest. Her name stays behind some attractive projects, among them schools, medical and community buildings, parks, recreational areas and much more. Arch. Toader is part of the international jury at Dibla Design Awards 2017.
How would you define the positive aspects of Romanian design?
I think that the Romanian design is very connected to the western European design. To define that I must say that, in my opinion, good design cannot be defined finitely – multiple perspectives are needed. Bucharest does have a Design Institute offering a broad range of styles, techniques, and approaches. As a result, the level of our designers is a European one.
Are there differences in design in Romania and Bulgaria?
Designers, everywhere, end up making the world better, more beautiful and more functional. Design adds value to both intellectual products and material value. A good design makes the user want to engage through intrinsic motivation, rather than extrinsic. I think that good design is, most of all, a state of mind not just a vibration of a region or country.
Is Balkan design on par with the best practices in Europe?
In a society of over-consumption, a good design and its best practices have an important objective. It builds on sustainability in the sense that design and materials are durable and not just a trend. Waste and over-consumption is not a part of good design. The Balkan design is not an exception.
What would you like to see from Dibla Design Awards participants?
The most famous, academic, ten principles for good design are: innovation, minimalism, honesty, usefulness, good design is aesthetic, is intuitive, is functional, is long-lasting, is user-oriented, is unobtrusive, is thorough–down to the last detail, engages through intrinsic motivation, is focused. We are, all, keen for good design.I’m sure that Dibla Design Awards will offer us new perspectives, new points of view.
You are a specialist in urbanism; should public interior projects fit into the city’s general style or should they stand out more individually?
Our primary conception of a building’s interior is that it’s private, so you need to go to great lengths to convince people that some interiors are public places, everyone is invited, you’re allowed to be there, and you shouldn’t feel threatened. I think if you’re a designer, the psychology of the threshold is the thing you want to tackle the most: creating easy ways to enter into space, so people don’t feel like they’ve entered into a restricted space.
