The New York Times Book of Interior Design and Decoration

by Norma Skurka

Photographs of rooms by outstanding professional designers cover all current design movements, and the accompanying text provides guidance in applying the design ideas according to one's house and budget

Genres: Art

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1976

Reviews

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so informative and frankly empowering? Norma Shurka so clearly loves and cares about the art of interior design and it's obvious in the way she writes about it. She also wants to bring the reader into this appreciation rather than wax on about how knowledgable she is. There's no shaming, although there are a few passages that have the tone of the cerulean blue sweater monologue from Devil Wears Prada but they serve the same purpose in that they are directed at people who may roll their eyes or consider themselves above this art form.
It's dated for sure. Rather than a section for roommates in a rented apartment there's a section for "young newlyweds" renting their first place. But it gives a great overview of how to approach interior design and decorating from square one. I say "empowering" because she lays out many times over that everyone deserves to have a nice home regardless of budget and there's no right or wrong way to decorate, unless you use fake plants or buy a matching set of furniture according to Shurka.
favorite line: "the perfect room is often rather dull. The greatest ingredient a room possesses is its individual personality".

[Beverly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly outdated, and the few parts that aren't don't contain anything you can't find in other books--how to make a floor plan, how to choose colors, etc. Only some of the book is in color. The book breaks down interior design into four categories: Traditional, Updated Traditional, European, and Modern American. The Traditional section was a total write-off for me (full grandma mode), and there were only a handful of inspiring images in the others. My biggest gripe is that it suffers from the Pinterest problem of featuring unbelievable architectural spaces, while purporting to be a book to help people design their own interiors. Did this seem as out of touch in 1976 as it does today? The one good thing about this book is that it has a ton of information about design history and styles, with a really good glossary. Still, that might only be of interest to trivia nerds, rather than anyone hoping to decorate their homes in the 2020s. I'd pass on this one.

[Erika Mulvenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great pictures of interior design from 1976. Includes both classic design; French & American styles, and modern design including Le Corbu, FL Wright, and van der Rohe.