Interior Design and Decorative Arts of Saudi Cultural Heritage - Research Proposal Example

Interior Design and Decorative Arts of Saudi cultural heritage. Introduction Background information Saudi Arabia has a rich history in cultural heritage encompassing both interior design and decorative arts. The people’s creativity is deeply rooted in Saudi’s ability to manage and coordinate interior design as well as decorations of rooms and buildings. The traditional heritage of one province is unique from that of another province. The variation of cultural heritage among Saudi provinces is as a result of cultural differences among social lives practiced in each province. Historically, interior design and decorative arts among Saudi people developed from their traditional lifestyles and complex setting from one province to another. The need of effectiveness in planning, space utilization as well as functional architectural design promoted the advancements of interior design. For instance, Majilis paintings have been one of the aspects of interior design practiced by Saudi people from Asir province. The decorative arts embraced by interior designers of both residential and commercial specialties reveal the connection between the historic nomadic life and the art of interior design practiced by Saudi Arabians. Although the practice was initially practiced by nomadic tribes of Saudi Arabians, the present contemporary artists have been actively engaged in displaying their creativity in interior design and decoration in galleries as well as international exhibitions (Ching 2012). Aim The main aim of this research proposal is to identify various aspects of Interior Design and Decorative Arts of Saudi cultural heritage. Objectives To identify aspects of interior design and decorative arts practiced by Saudi people. To find out historic evidence concerning the practice of interior design and decorative arts practiced by Saudi people. To find out various areas that use interior design and decorative arts of Saudi Arabians. To identify Saudi Government’s strategy of conserving interior design and decorative arts Research questions Did Saudi Arabians practice interior design and decorative arts? Are there historic evidence that explain development of interior design and decorative arts among Saudi people? Are there specific areas/groups that have embraced interior design and decorative arts of Saudi Cultural heritage? Have the government of Saudi Arabia taken any steps aimed at conserving interior design and decorative arts of Saudi cultural heritage? Literature review There are various literatures detailing historic information concerning development and growth of interior design and decorative arts of Saudi cultural heritage. The evidence has been documented and preserved in the national archives and museums. The role of conserving cultural heritage of the Saudi people has been given to the ministry in charge of culture. Concerning architectural design and decoration artworks, Saudi people have observed their traditional heritage artworks by decorating their houses as well as the use of appropriate interior design techniques. Building designs and decorations, of Saudi people, vary from one province to another. Therefore, Saudi Arabians have embraced different forms of interior design and decorative arts. An example of interior design and decorative arts is wall paintings known as Majilis paintings. Majilis paintings are mostly practiced by Saudi people from Asir province and the art involves geometrical designs that embrace different colors. Historically, majilis paintings revealed the pride of Saudi women in the house. The main reason being that interior walls of houses, staircases, doors and furniture in Saudi were painted by women. The design was adapted from weaving and textile industry of early Saudi Arabians. Being one of the most valued traditional heritages, the art of interior design and decorative art has been strengthened through the government ministry in charge of both information and culture. Discussion The aspects of interior design and decorative arts among Saudi people developed from their traditional lifestyles and complex setting from one province to another. the need of proper planning and design of spaces in residential places as well as their lifestyle contributed towards the developments. For instance, majilis paintings in Asir province show wall, doors and staircase paintings in support of interior design and decorative arts. Nowadays, Children get to learn about interior design and decorative art as a cultural heritage at an early age (Embaby 2014). The traditions are deeply rooted in the Islamic teaching, necessitating the trait teaching to children at an early age. After being taken through the training on Saudi traditional heritage, youths are then subjected to competitions on the skills gained, as a way of motivating them to continue practicing the art. Since most tribes of Saudi people were nomads, interior designs and decorations of the Saudi people contains the concept of their early life. The recent governmental effort aimed at preserving cultural heritage of the Saudi people has been promoted through establishment of various culturalconservation institutions. The guidelines on establishment and promotion of Saudi cultural heritage have been spearheaded by the ministry in charge of culture (Mirkia 2013). The ministry has been on the frontline in promoting cultural conservation by offering sponsorship as well as organizing events that provide interior designers and decorative artists with opportunities to showcase their creativity in embracing Saudi’s traditional artworks (Lin 2012). A wide range of cultural activities take place during the events and programs organized by the, ministry in charge of culture. For instance, it is during such workshops that artist and interior designers display and even sell their products to the public. In most cases, the events are held at both the regional offices of the cultural department and its headquarters in Riyadh. Also, successful artists receive sponsorship to participate in the international workshops and competitions to display their products concerning artwork and calligraphy. The love of decorative arts among both Saudi people as well as Muslim community has been displayed through interior design and decorations of commercial and residential buildings (Asojo 2015). Important manuscripts have also been decorated so as to inspire the people during prayer and meditation. Also, decorations are having been incorporated on the plates and jewelry. The culture of interior design and decorative art has also been embraced by Saudi people in architectural areas. The present construction activities being practiced in Saudi borrows most its design and decorative features from the early constructions determined by climatic conditions (Tucker 2015). Although presently the design of houses and buildings in Saudi Arabia are being considered to be a product of creativity among artists and other designers, the basis of the design can be linked back to the historic and nomadic lifestyle of the early Saudi people. The nomadic life of many Saudi people has played a big role in shaping the approach taken by many artists from Saudi Arabia. For instance, many art objects like glass, jewelry, ceramics and carpets are portable and neatly decorated with vines, flowers, calligraphy and geometric ornamentations. Taking a look at the carpet, most of them are made and decorated using skufic script, arabesque patterns as well as complex geometric. The use of artwork on carpets is connected with the strong desire among Saudi people of using decorations on their property. Conclusion The Saudi contemporary Art Scene has been vibrant and flourishing in the international arena. The main reasons leading to the success of interior design and decorative art of Saudi is the ability of the artists to hold on and incorporate their cultural heritage in most of the designs. Most of the artists have mastered the art of embracing Islamic artworks in their interior design and decorations. Also, the success has been brought about by Islamic interior designers and decorators’ ability to rekindle old artworks when decorating mosques and other buildings. References Asojo, A. O. 2015, Testing a Culture-Based Design Pedagogy: A Case Study. The Handbook of Interior Design, 432. Ching, F. D., & Binggeli, C. 2012, Interior design illustrated. John Wiley & Sons. Goodwin, C., Cowan, D. J., Frank, M. A., & Mclaughlin, E. A. 2012, STRATEGIC PLANNING METHODOLOGY WITHIN ARCHITECTURAL AND INTERIOR DESIGN TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMS. In American Society for Engineering Education. American Society for Engineering Education. Embaby, M. E. 2014, Heritage conservation and architectural education:“An educational methodology for design studios”. HBRC Journal, 10(3), 339-350. Lin, S., Changjun, F., Yujiang, L., & Junliang, Z. 2014, Conception and Practice of Characteristic Interior Decoration: New Library of Xian Shiyou University as Example. Furniture & Interior Design, 10, 007. Dwidar, S. I., & Farah, D. S. 2012, Curriculum design and development for interior design: An applied study on interior design program at Prince Sultan University, Saudi Arabia. In Education and e-Learning Innovations (ICEELI), 2012 International Conference on (pp. 1-7). IEEE. Merrell, P., Schkufza, E., Li, Z., Agrawala, M., & Koltun, V. 2011, Interactive furniture layout using interior design guidelines. ACM Transactions on Graphics (TOG), 30(4), 87. Mirkia, H., Sangari, A., Nelson, M., & Assadi, A. H. 2013, Quantifying patterns of dynamics in eye movement to measure goodness in organization of design elements in interior architecture. In IS&T/SPIE Electronic Imaging (pp. 86511D-86511D). International Society for Optics and Photonics. Tucker, L. 2015 The Relationship between Historic Preservation and Sustainability in Interior Design. The Handbook of Interior Design, 382. Xue, S., & Ming, S. 2012, The Principle of Application and Practical Significance of Traditional Chinese Color System in Modern Interior Design. Journal of Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts, 4, 037. Read More