The complete guide to portfolio development for interior designers
It's a widely known fact that interior designers need a strong visual presence in the form of a well-crafted, professional-looking portfolio. Surprisingly, however, many interior designers aren't equipped with the expertise required to organize and unify their work in a fashion that optimally conveys their talents and skills.
Portfolios for Interior Designers helps demystify the process by guiding the reader toward mastery in assembling a winning portfolio. It delivers essential step-by-step instruction presented in a manner that shows interior designers how to properly and effectively display their designs. This book also includes:
Color and black-and-white illustrations showing portfolio elements and options
Graphic design concepts necessary for portfolio development
Specific information for the design of digital portfolios
Supplemental teaching resources that direct readers to a companion Web site
Useful tips on the ways that popular graphics software applications can be best implemented for certain portfolio elements
Samples of cover letters and resumes, along with discussion of job search procedures
With the aid of real-world examples, Portfolios for Interior Designers examines how a portfolio can be used as an effective tool for communicating with clients and other professionals. A much-needed guide, this book eliminates the uncertainty surrounding portfolio development so that interior designers can showcase their abilities success-fullyâand land the next job.
The following quotes sum up key points in this book:
Designâwhether graphic, industrial, interior or architectureâis the process of taking unrelated parts and putting them together in an organized unit.
âALEXANDER WHITE, THE ELEMENTS OF GRAPHIC DESIGN:
SPACE, UNITY, PAGE ARCHITECTURE, AND TYPE (2002)
And:
Work your plan and plan your work.
This book is intended as an aid in taking what are often seemingly unrelated elements and putting them together in an organized unitâand not being overwhelmed by the process (thatâs where having a plan worth working comes in).
Many students, graduates, and job seekers feel overwhelmed by the thought of putting together a portfolio: in representing your entire body of work, the portfolio can symbolize your fears about graduation, employmentâeven about a successful future. (No small issue there!) However, by breaking down the elements of portfolio development, you can, in fact, develop a plan that yields excellent results.
One key is to stay focused on the tasks at hand and not become overwhelmed by the future or by fear. Instead, focus on working through the process in a step-by-step manner as described in the following pages and symbolized in Figure 1-1.
FIGURE 1-1Imagining the job search and portfolio development process as a series of small and manageable steps will keep you from becoming overwhelmed.
The following chapters convey the ways in which the components of an interior designerâs education, experience, and personal narrative can be put together in an organized manner. Additional information about the process and materials required for finding employment for interior designers is also included.
This book has a somewhat unusual organizational structure. The first section is devoted to the basic information required for the job search and for preparing the portfolio; the second section is devoted to examples. Much like a portfolio, the written components of this book are as succinct as possible, with the focus on the work and images.
OVERVIEW OF THE JOB SEARCH
For those of you who have not searched for and obtained a professional, full-time job previously, a bit of background about the process is included here. Put very briefly, the process can be seen as consisting of three phases:
STANDARD FULL-TIME JOB SEARCH PROCESS PHASES*
Phase 1: Preparation
Self-assessment and development of a portfolio, resume, cover letter, and corollary items.
Phase 2: Research and Distribution
Researching potential employers and opportunities; the systematic distribution of the items prepared in phase one.
Phase 3: The Interview and Offer
Preparing for the interview, the interview and follow-up, receiving and accepting the offer.
*Due to ongoing economic uncertainty, many first jobs are not full-time.
The process is, however, more complex than a short list might indicate, and there are many books devoted entirely to each phase mentioned. At specific times in your life, it may be worthwhile to do a serious study of any one of these items or phases. For example, self-assessment is incredibly important as you contemplate moving from one profession to another, or from one specialty area to another. Richard Nelson Bollesâs What Color Is Your Parachute (2009) is an excellent resource for those involved in a job search, and it has quite a bit of content devoted to self-assessment for those considering career changes.
Remember the quote about working your plan and planning your work? Success with that concept starts right here. By working through the three phases listed above, you will be developing a plan that you can follow through on. Going through the first steps thoroughly will enable you to develop a clear understanding of what type of job you want or where you want to live; then you will have a plan worth working.
PHASE 1: PREPARATION
A serious self-assessment will help you identify your strengths and weaknesses, as well as the tasks that you find most enjoyable. Most readers of this book, however, have already made the decision to go into design after a previous period of assessmentâas well as a huge investment of time and money. Rather than focusing on the type of personal assessment required as you contemplate career choices, this chapter will therefore consider ways of assessing your work, experience, and life story as you begin to prepare a portfolio and other job-search tools.
