Isabella Salati is a perfect example of a student of the academy. She lives in her hometown in Italy and is studying a BA (Hons) via the home study option at the British Academy of Interior Design (BAID). She found BAID when she was an au-pair in London and the fact she could return home and still pursue her studies, was ideal. The guiding principle of the academy is accessibility, and this is a prime example of the success of this approach.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
As she progresses through her course, Isabella’s work is becoming stronger and more confident. For this assignment, Isabella’s interpretation of the brief was to create a gender-neutral retail space with additional immersive areas. The first thing Isabella did was look around her. She is an experienced surveyor and therefore has a strong sense of space. Her creative senses were also tingling and as her inner interior designer evolves through her studies, Isabella is beginning to see the world around her in a different way. Suddenly everything is inspiration, and she is gathering ideas and spotting potential all around.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
There was a time when Milan was at the epicentre of fashion and textile manufacturing globally. Before the fashion industry migrated to China, Milan was filled with warehouses and manufacturing plants. As a native Italian this was not lost on Isabella, and it was an abandoned rail warehouse that sits vacant near her home that caught her eye. Every day she would see this enormous building sitting there, crumbling before her eyes. This was her inspiration and this was going to be the basis for her project.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
Philosophy
The next task was the philosophy, doctrine, and ethics of the fashion brand that would utilize the space. Isabella wants to live in an inclusionary world where gender is not defined, and people are not judged. Her goal was to design a retail space where prejudices are left at the door, and all are welcome. Her approach to interior design goes far beyond aesthetics and while it is important for a space to look good, Isabella believes that a strong design will have a positive impact on the way we live and our lifestyle.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
Her first step was to determine how she would best utilize this enormous old rail building before moving on to the business of creating a gender-neutral experience. On her quest to avoid even the most accidental bias, Isabella consulted an algorithm. The algorithm would identify architectural and furnishing elements as female (+) or male (-). Isabella then combined quantities and types of furniture in order to lead to a zero 0 result. The idea was to always end up with a neutral result with neither gender dominating a zone. This experimental but also very precise approach helped Isabella to ensure that she was rigid in her neutrality and fair in her allocation of male or female items.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
Isabella is clearly a student who does not believe in doing things by halves and her attention to detail is one of the reasons her project stood out. In order to get a clearer picture of the layout of this enormous space, Isabella built a scale model. The structure was a 3600sqm rail station building so she not only had lots of room to work with, but she had the challenge of transforming such a gargantuan building into a welcoming space.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
The detail
The entrance was designed using a single colour and includes a declaration of “No Judgment”. The single colour represents the singularity of people and immediately removed any presumptions of a female or male orientated space. This was a large retail space for a high-street fashion line, but the user experience is designed for so much more than just genderless shopping. There is a huge, shared space that is a museum of the history of the brand plus a sustainability section with information on the brand ethos plus the environmental impact of manufacturing. Isabella also included a workshop where customers can get creative and personalize an item of clothing or product that they have purchased.
Image: Interior Design project of a gender-neutral retail store by Isabella Salati, BAID student.
Watch this space!
Isabella brought so much of herself to this project and her passion and commitment to the movement is evident in the sheer scale of her work. She is interested in eventually working in commercial properties as a professional interior designer and would love to revive the old Italian buildings that now lay dormant and gather dust. The idea of gender free society is something she has been exploring for some time and this assignment was an opportunity to do something she already cares deeply about. It is evident that through Isabella’s research, hard work, and tireless attention to detail, she has a bright future in commercial design ahead of her.