Northumbria Interior Architecture student named ‘Interiorist of the Year’ in London

Interior Architecture students from Northumbria University, Newcastle, have brought this summer’s London invasion to an award-winning close after taking the top prize at Free Range Interiors.

Bringing Northumbria’s highly successful stay in the capital to an exciting close, Interior Architecture graduate Natasha Kwok took away the IE (Interior Educators) Interiorist of the Year 2014 award – one of only six accolades given out on the night – for her work carried out on The National Trust’s Gibside Hall.

The 20 Interior Architecture students are the first graduating cohort since the course was introduced to Northumbria University in 2011, and they marked the occasion by travelling down to London to exhibit their work alongside 400 other students from 30 of the UK’s best universities at Free Range Interiors at the Old Truman Brewery.

Paul Ring, the programme leader for Interior Architecture at Northumbria University, said: “As the first graduating cohort from the Interior Architecture course, this year’s final year students have really done us proud, each producing exceptional ideas and well executed   projects, which absolutely stood out at the final showcase.

“Natasha’s award win is testament to the incredible talent and energy we have produced as a result of three years of hard work and dedication from both the students and staff – a big thank you to everyone involved in helping make our show at IE: Free Range in London such a success."

Natasha’s winning project was the potential transformation of the historic Gibside Hall building into a centre for cancer rehabilitation and public hydrotherapy, giving people a sanctuary from hospitals and hectic city life.

Natasha, originally from Edinburgh, said: “The whole experience in London was a great eye opener – there were so many universities attending making it a great opportunity to see what other students had been working on.

“Northumbria has without a doubt established a great style amongst its Interior Architecture students and it was a great feeling to see mine and my fellow student’s work on display. Winning the award was the icing on the cake and has given me the confidence to kickstart my career in design.”

Natasha’s award was just one of the prizes picked up by Northumbria students at the London degree shows, with staff and students enjoying success at every graduate show they attended.

This year’s winning work included seven awards at Graduate Fashion Week, five Best in Show Awards at D&AD’s New Blood and a top industry prize at New Designers for the third year running, as well as Natasha’s Interiorist of the Year at Free Range Interiors.

Their success was celebrated further in the capital through pop-up street art and a series of guerrilla projections, created by graduates and commissioned by the University, to highlight some of the stand-out work that hit this year’s shows.

Interior Architecture’s award-winning spell in London comes at the same time as another success for the programme after it received 100% student satisfaction in the latest National Student Survey, which was announced last week.