Liam Isler, refuge from reality [×]

This research major project is grounded within ideas of human connection and how we inhabit and utilise interior spaces. The research initially investigates these ideas through various strategies and methods of functionality towards dwelling design that revolves around the individual, their needs, and their quality of living. Currently, the project has moved into a focus of developing a means of escapism: a temporary distraction and retreat from the everyday. The project aims to do this by providing a space that promotes well-being through comfort.
The concept of comfort has become an integral component within the project; one that has informed design decisions and considerations through its subjectiveness between individuals. Though the context of the project has shifted from dwelling design, some aspects of the design strategies explored in the earlier stages of the project have led to the current proposal to design space that heightens a sense of escapism and serenity. The ideas have been explored through various processes, including photography, model making, collaging, drawing, and iconography.
It has become clear through the body of work that designing for well-being can be achieved through numerous means. The project focuses on escapism as a way of providing temporary distraction from quotidian moments within one's personal or professional lives. The research has reinforced the importance of rest and comfort, and how these aspects can be utilised within the overall project to re-establish the well-being of people that can sometimes be lost when we are so focused on our own day to day rituals and routines.