Interior design is more than just the paint

With popular television shows such as “Trading Spaces” or “Queer

Eye for the Straight Guy,” the interior design profession has

sometimes been misunderstood, according to several interior design

majors.

“People think our only job is to pick out paint for a room or

fluff up pillows,” said Tommy Altamirano, a junior interior design

major.

Altimarano is the president of the American Society of Interior

Designers chapter on CSU’s campus.

“We are one of the largest, if not the largest, professional

clubs at CSU right now,” Altimarano said.

The chapter on campus is the largest it has been in CSU history

with approximately 94 members.

“ASID tries to educate. A lot of people have misunderstandings

about interior design,” said Altimarano, referring to some of the

current television shows in which only certain aspects of the job

are shown.

“ASID is the largest professional organization for interior

design in the United States,” Altimarano said. The ASID was

established in 1975.

One thing that the organizations try to do is to get

professionals to come to campus to do workshops on certain aspects

of interior design.

“We’ll pick people who specialize in a certain branch of

interior design to come in to speak,” Altamarano said.

ASID focuses on creating universal access to buildings,

including handicap access. Interior design also focuses on security

elements. Altimarano gave the example of a new elementary school in

town that has high security, something that interior designers

focus on but hardly ever get credit for.

Interior designers work alongside architects. They do not just

come in when the building is finished, which is another common

misconception, Altamarano said.

This is a constant battle with architects.

“Interior design here in Colorado is trying to become a licensed

profession,” Altamarano said.

This is a struggle because making interior design a licensed

profession would take away part of an architect’s job.

“We try to relate a building to people,” Altamarano said.

Rachael Giudice, junior interior design major, is the

professional liaison for the ASID chapter on campus. She focuses on

getting events set up with professionals.

“I have connections with professionals,” Giudice said. “It gives

me the chance to see things from a professional point of view.”

Stephanie Clemons associate professor of design and

merchandising department and the faculty advisor for ASID.

“My responsibilities are to help guide the organization of the

counsel, to act as a liaison between them and the national

chapter,” she said. “I’m there for support and guidance. It truly

is a student-run chapter.”