Interior design students at Home Show

blog Date published 6 10 2017 , Age 7 years ago

Ten students on the NMIT Diploma in Interior Design have taken their courage and their talents into the public arena with two displays at the Nelson Home and Garden Show, attended by thousands from September 29-October 1 2017.

Tutor Sarmya Clayton says the real-world experience of applying classroom learnings to conceive, plan and stage their ideas at the show that’s typical of the NMIT programme has been a fantastic experience. “I’m very proud of them for what they’ve managed to achieve”.

The diploma students were divided into two groups with a brief to design and find sponsorship to present their interior showpieces. “They’ve had to fit it in around their normal assignments so it has been a real challenge but one that will stand them in good stead when they go out into the workplace,” says Sarmya.

The students each had one exhibition space to show their talents. One group used largely discarded materials to produce a small sitting room setting while the others realized a brief to produce a contemporary look in a kitchen/dining space.

The students, ranging from recent school leavers to more mature women, worked as teams and had to come up with a concept and mock-up and then find sponsors to help stage their installation. PKDesign, Nood, Resene and the Recycling Centre lent their support.

“It’s been a positive experience for the students from start to finish,” says Sarmya.

“It’s been great for them to step away from the classroom and apply their learning as an installation, to see their designs on paper or CAD come to life, to do real problem solving and then getting all the public feedback too.”

Being at the home show with so many other exhibitors has enabled the students to network and Sarmya says the NMIT stands have attracted interest from potential employers who have projects coming up. Work will come out of that, and potentially on-going employment for students, she says.

But now that the Home and Garden show has packed up, the students are back into full study mode at NMIT, preparing final project submissions as they look towards graduation. Samaya says some graduates will find work in Nelson-Tasman while others will go to Wellington, Dunedin, Christchurch and elsewhere and a few may go on to do a degree course. Sarmya says the market for interior designers is expanding throughout the country and the emphasis on practical real-life experience during the NMIT diploma course is a plus for NMIT graduates.