About the Research
Robust Production of New Knowledge
celebrating 19 years of continuous research
21 M.A. theses
11 practice type studies
4 element studies
85 intypes
600+ photographs
3 refereed academic articles
1 book citation
10 popular articles
25 presentations to industry, firms & universities
1 free & open web site
Project Description
The Intypes (Interior Archetypes) Research and Teaching Project, initiated in 1997 at Cornell University, creates a typology of contemporary interior design practices that are derived from reiterative historical designs that span time and style and cross cultural boundaries. An Intype represents an ideal example of a historical and culturally determined practice of design.
The project produces a new knowledge base from practice-led research by creating the first typology of contemporary design practices that are derived from historical sequences.
The research identifies design traits that have not been named, generates a design-specific vocabulary and publishes a digital database of interior architectural photographs.
The project also offers an innovative approach to further design criticism and design sustainability.
It is the first project of its kind to assemble contemporary design theory in a digital database using interior architecture photographs.
Project Time Line
1997 initiated research at Cornell University
2007-2010 awarded Faculty Innovation in Teaching Grants
2007 enlisted founding partners | IIDA & Interior Design
2009 launched free & open web site
Intypes Research Group
Research for the Intypes Study at Cornell is generated by an interdisciplinary research group comprised of four graduate faculty representing three colleges and a cadre of Master of Arts graduate students in interior design. (See the Scholars Page.) The research from 21 M.A. theses has contributed to this project.
Research Approaches
Premise. Interior Design is temporally limited. In contract design an installation remains approximately seven years, less for hospitality design in a good economy. It is vitally important for interior designers to understand our body of work. The creative dimension of design has become a knowledge base.
Method. To Aldo Rossi (1982) “type is the very idea of architecture, closest to its essence”. The Intypes Project’s methodological structure produces the first typology of interior design (a grouping of design productions in which some inherent characteristics make them similar). Initially, the project derives types from the published work of designers
Theory. The project's theoretical framework is based on George Kubler’s model, The Shape of Time. A sequence of design iterations by designers can be traced through time—as a continuum, or a series of replications—marked by linked and similar solutions. In the long run, a sequence may serve as scaffolding for new design. This theory allows faculty to formally teach contemporary design as part of historical studies.
Protocol. Research begins with tracing a series of design practices in approximately 1,200 issues of design trade magazines, such as Interior Design and Architectural Record. When types begin to take shape, researchers conduct site visits in order to compare printed images with built works.
The Importance of Trade Magazines to the Research. Interior Design is temporally limited. In contract design an installation remains approximately seven years, less for hospitality design in a good economy. Therefore, design and architectural trade magazines provide a longitudinal record of contract work. For example, Interior Design began publishing in 1932; Architectural Record has been in continuous publication since 1891. Other design trade periodicals are also surveyed, including those in areas of specialization, such as hospitality design, as well as international titles.
Categories of Study. Studies have been completed for Apartment, Artificial Light, Bar & Club, Hotel, House, Material, Resort and Spa, Restaurant, Retail, School K-12, Showroom, Spatial Graphic Design, Theme Dining, Transformative Interior, and Workplace.
Naming Practices. With 85 intypes identified to date, each Intype name and icon must mean something to those who recollect them. Terms are mnemonic. The processes of naming Intypes, visual representation and definition are about reduction.
Naming also represents a translation of design practices into a formalized language that stems from research, but with the intent to be accessible to a diversified group of users.
When an Intype term is used without explanation or translation or gloss, it is considered an accepted part of design language. The diverse ways in which Intypes will be put to use makes it a language. If the language is engaged by the public, then Intypes become a productive language.
Dissemination & Impact
Digital is how we work
New knowledge is visualized in 85 icons and over 500 photographs.
Groundbreaking Paradigm Shift
The project "invigorates the education process." Cindy Allen, Editor-in-Chief, Interior Design
The vocabulary aids in describing & criticizing built work.
The "strength of the methodology is its relationship to studio." Journal of Interior Design reviewers
Designers come to understand their work as part of a historical reiterative process.
"The breadth, depth & scope of this project represent a boundary stretching leap for the interior design profession." Cheryl Durst, Fellow, Executive Vice President/CEO, IIDA
Additional Research
- Jennings, Jan. "A Case for Typology: The Interior Archetypes Project,” Journal of Interior Design 32, no. 3 (2007): 48-68. "Object-Context-Design: The State of Interior Design History, An Introduction to the Thematic Issue," Journal of Interior Design 24, no. 2 (1998): 1-3. (pdf)
- Jennings, Jan. “Le Corbusier’s ‘Naked’: ‘Absolute Honesty’ and (Exhibitionist) Display in Bathroom Settings.” Interiors: Design, Architecture and Culture 2, no. 3 (2011): 307-32. (pdf)
- Jennings, Jan. “Naming Design Practices: Producing a Body of Knowledge of the Creative Dimension of Interior Design.” Communicating (by) Design. Brussels, Belgium: Sint Lucas School of Architecture in Brussels, Belgium and Department of Architecture at the Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg, Sweden, 2009, 145-50. (pdf)
