KU Leuven is looking for a doctoral researcher

Project

In many Western countries, the field of interior architecture is characterised by an on-going identity crisis. The confusion becomes apparent via the diverse nomenclature: interior architecture, interiordesign and interior decoration. Furthermore, the discipline was often (and still is) perceived as feminine and amateurish. Attempts to correct this image have significantly characterised the professionalisation of interior design since World War II. This is particularly noticeable in the field of education. Contemporary interior design courses are still challenged to define themselves and to address their gendered image. Vocational courses have now achieved academic status, but in which ways did this change the identity of the profession? This project takes Belgium as a case study because of its diverse and bilingual educational landscape. The programmes in interior design are rooted in different traditions: the Beaux Arts tradition and the Arts & Crafts. How did interior design evolve in relation to these distinct educational branches? To address this, the project aims to develop detailed genealogies of all interior design courses in Belgium up until 1999, the year of the Bologna Declaration. Furthermore, a new method will be elaborated and refined for assessing the role of education in the identity formation of interior design. This method will also provide a thematic framework for international comparative research.

This FWO research project is a joint initiative of UAntwerpen, represented by prof. Els De Vos, and KU Leuven, represented by prof. Fredie Floré. Both universities are simultaneously hiring a full time doctoral researcher in order to compile a research team. The PhD student at KU Leuven will first and foremost investigate the educational programmes in interior design which were developed by Catholic oriented institutions and were inspired by Arts & Crafts legacies. These institutions include for example the former Sint-Lucas schools in Brussels, Ghent and Liège. The PhD student at UAntwerpen will focus on investigating the interior design programmes developed by institutions with roots in the Beaux Arts tradition including the Royal Academies of Antwerp and Ghent. Some parts of the research project will be done jointly or in collaboration with the supervisors, including part of the literature study, the organization of a workshop and a conference, and the development of several publications.