Artist Biography
Sierra is a Master’s student of Interior Architecture at Endicott College, finishing up her third and final year as a career changer. She had previously earned her Bachelor’s degree in Textiles, Fashion Merchandising, and Design from the University of Rhode Island, with a minor in Business. Sierra has 8 years of experience in the residential design field, in addition to working as a sales associate for an international textile and wallpaper house. Through these years, Sierra gained firsthand knowledge of the operations that go into designing homes, both overtly and behind the scenes. Sierra has always had a passion for interior design which led her to this path, and her passion is continuing to evolve, especially with the knowledge gained from Endicott’s IA program.
Through her experience at Endicott College, she has learned how her interest in design lies in sensory experiences and human feeling. Sierra is drawn to designs that stimulate feelings of warmth and comfort, joy, and wellbeing, while simultaneously protecting the natural environment.
Her work completed during this Graduate program explores how environments can foster bodily experiences and atmospheres that allow people to feel present and connected to their surroundings. Sierra hopes to develop this interest further and is able to apply these ideas in her future work.
Thesis Abstract
Sierra’s thesis explores how interior design can reimagine office spaces and integrate local nature, even in workplaces which do not have access to large scale budgets.
Nature brings humans endless mental and physical health benefits, which stem from our evolutionary roots. The entire population deserves these nature-centered benefits, and they are much more accessible in design than most seem to believe. Applying nature does not have to be done through large, expensive, or high maintenance interventions, and my thesis design explores a solution for this.
Sierra’s interest in the environment and human, everyday experience spaces inspired these ideas. Today, we spend roughly 90% of our time indoors, especially in Boston, where seasonal weather and urban, industrialized environments intensify this.
Through small scale, accessible, and locally nature-centered applications, this design manifested.