Future100 Interior Design Undergraduate Winners

Ariella Ahdut | School of Visual Arts

NOMINATOR: Carol Bentel, Chair, BFA Interior Design: Built Environments

From a sustainable urban living solution to a restorative justice project, Ahdut seeks to create healthier communities and drive change through her designs.

Sara Alvarez | New York School of Interior Design

NOMINATOR: Ellen Fisher, Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs

Alvarez’s body of work reveals an elegant design sensibility with attention to color, line, and form in spaces spanning hospitality, retail, and workplace typologies.  

Allison Baker | Kent State University

NOMINATOR: Tina Patel, Assistant Professor of Interior Design

With an approach rooted in thorough research and understanding of context, Baker creates empathetic sensory experiences within workplace, education, and community spaces.

Sarah Bannon | Virginia Tech

NOMINATOR: Lisa M. Tucker, Chair, Interior Design Program 

Bannon’s passion for drawing and painting is evident in her creative, expressive presentations of spaces ranging from a multiple sclerosis spa to a veterans’ living community.

Leonie Brightly | Virginia Commonwealth University

NOMINATOR: Kristin Carleton, Assistant Professor and Interim Administrative Director of Interior Design

Brightly’s body of work includes lively, vibrant interiors with a sensitivity to human needs and attention to detail that enhance the user experience.  

Sombre Carleton | Kent State University

NOMINATOR: William Willoughby, Architect, Associate Professor of Interior Design  

Carleton demonstrates a commitment to immersive, creative design that reflects the diversity of our world and supports the health and well-being of others. 

Ashley Chen | The University of Texas at Austin

NOMINATOR: Igor Siddiqui, Program Director for Interior Design 

Chen’s work is whimsical yet practical, offering solutions that respond to program and client needs but also incorporate colorful forms, patterns, and materials.

Jiang Chen | University of Nebraska–Lincoln

NOMINATOR: Lindsey Bahe, Interior Design Program Director

From a portable classroom to an office that helps employees transition smoothly from home to in-office work, Jiang demonstrates an affinity for navigating the dynamic nature of design.

Maria Cicone | Rochester Institute of Technology

NOMINATOR: Mary Golden, Undergraduate Program Director and Associate Professor of Interior Design

Cicone’s designs for hospitality interiors, workplaces, public spaces, and more demonstrate a sensitivity to human scale and an awareness of the role design plays in shaping experience.

Arianna Dantes | Florida State University

NOMINATOR: Amy Huber, Associate Professor

Detailed floor plans, lifelike digital renderings, and refined material palettes demonstrate Dantes’s abilities as an emergent interior designer.

Lindsey Decatrel | Fashion Institute of Technology

NOMINATOR: Jack Travis, Adjunct CCE Professor

As an interior design student, Decatrel has interests ranging from high-end retail to supportive housing, and present throughout her portfolio is an eagerness to create designs that delight and inspire.

Alexis Friedman | College for Creative Studies

NOMINATOR: Sandra Olave, Department Chair of Interior Design

With a design language influenced by internet aesthetics like vaporwave and retro design styles from the ’70s and ’80s, Friedman brings designs to life with exuberant renderings and collages.

Paige Frost | The University of Texas at Austin

NOMINATOR: Igor Siddiqui, Program Director for Interior Design

Frost’s design for a multipurpose transit center in Austin, Texas, with cement surfaces in circulation areas and warm wood tones in hospitality spaces demonstrates a close attention to materiality.

Xiran Geng | School of Visual Arts

NOMINATOR: Carol Bentel, Architect, Partner, Bentel & Bentel Architects; Chair, BFA Interior Design Department, School of Visual Arts

Highlights of Geng’s portfolio include a low-carbon micro apartment and an audio sculpture that makes music as wind passes through tensioned cables.

Abby Harvey | Virginia Tech

NOMINATOR: Lisa Tucker, Professor and Chair, Interior Design

For her thesis, Harvey designed a health and wellness center for a multigenerational population in Singapore, developing a comprehensive design for a facility rooted in extensive research.

Micaela Rose Head | Virginia Tech

NOMINATOR: Lisa Tucker, Professor and Chair, Interior Design

Schemes for hospitality, residential, and retail projects in Head’s portfolio show this young designer’s ability to develop material palettes and design briefs into complete spaces.

Selena Helms | Purdue University

NOMINATOR: Barbara Young, Assistant Professor

A self-identified Black, queer woman, Helms is passionate about accessibility in interior design. She says, “It’s important that in the future we are designing interior spaces and making them inclusive for all.”

Rachel Kamkhehji | Fashion Institute of Technology

NOMINATOR: Joseph Goldstein, Adjunct Assistant Professor

With an appreciation for texture, material, and color, Kamkhehji designs eye-popping ceiling and lighting treatments for her hospitality and restaurant projects.

Eugene Kim | Savannah College of Art and Design

NOMINATOR: Challie Schafer, Professor of Interior Design 

Kim brings an artistic sensibility to his work, translating concepts into thoughtful interior design details through impressive drawing skills. He also pursues furniture design as a passion project.

Abbey Kunselman | University of Florida

NOMINATOR: Genesis Okken, Instructional Assistant Professor

Kunselman’s design philosophy is centered on ideas of joy, ease, and storytelling. Dedicated to human-centered design, she believes that when it comes to interior design, function and beauty go hand in hand.

Xinze Li | School of Visual Arts

NOMINATOR: Carol Bentel, Chair, BFA Interior Design: Built Environments

Through two projects that center the needs and experiences of formerly incarcerated individuals, Li’s work displays a dedication to both ecological and restorative justice.

Sarah Lobo | University of Florida

NOMINATOR: Genesis Okken, Instructional Assistant Professor

“Design affects how people feel, move, and breathe,” Lobo writes. With this in mind, the projects in her portfolio explore play, color, and the emotional impact of interior design.

Virginia Macoy | Auburn University

NOMINATOR: Anna Ruth Gatlin, Assistant Professor

President of student chapters of ASID and IIDA, Macoy has a portfolio reflecting her belief in interiors that promote health and wellness.

Laura Maschino | Iowa State University

NOMINATOR: Jae Hwa Lee, Assistant Professor, Interior Design

Anticipating real-world needs, Maschino’s design solutions emphasize flexible furniture, multi-use spaces, and built-in technology.

Aleah Mazyck | University of North Carolina Greensboro

NOMINATOR: Lucinda K. Havenhand, Department Head and Professor

Mazyck’s study of marketing and fine art in addition to interior architecture is apparent in work that addresses users’ behavior, emotions, and quality of life.

Charlotte McGraw | Virginia Tech

NOMINATOR: Lisa Tucker, Interior Design Program Chair

A passion for drawing, painting, and photography is evident in McGraw’s portfolio of interior concepts.

Kathryn Merta | University of Minnesota

NOMINATOR: Meghan Hendrickson, Professor/Lecturer

The diverse interiors in Merta’s portfolio reflect a strong interest in sustainability and indoor planting.

Mary Claire Moravits | The University of Texas at Austin

NOMINATOR: Igor Siddiqui, Program Director for Interior Design, Associate Professor of Architecture and Interior Design

Moravits’s portfolio illustrates her talent in placemaking and keen grasp of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on interiority, especially in her Japanese restaurant concept Akachochin.

Marialejandra Quevedo Wong | Savannah College of Art and Design

NOMINATOR: Ricardo Navarro, Professor of Interior Design/Graduate Coordinator

Quevedo Wong’s portfolio is imbued with the idea that design can drive social change: Witness visualizations for concepts such as an inclusive, sustainable workplace for eyeglasses company Warby Parker.

Katie Regis | Ryerson University

NOMINATOR: Joel Hunking, Studio Instructor

A fine arts approach to physical models and sketches and a firm belief that Scandinavian design is a key to wellness distinguish Regis’s uplifting portfolio of white, daylit interiors.

Yanina Santos | Fashion Institute of Technology 

NOMINATOR: Nicole Migeon, Adjunct Assistant Professor

Santos’s well-researched, accessible work merges visual flair with sensitivity to site, culture, and the environment. 

Samantha Setokusumo | Savannah College of Art and Design, Atlanta

NOMINATOR: Challie Schafer, Professor of Interior Design

Winner of multiple academic scholarships, Setokusumo implements stylish, smart strategies that respect client needs and are highly practicable. 

Lauren Shaul | University of Nebraska–Lincoln 

NOMINATOR: Lindsey Bahe, Interior Design Program Director

Shaul’s sophisticated, urbane designs are infused with natural materials, biophilic principles, and a keen sense of the natural world outside. 

Rebekah Summa | Samford University

NOMINATOR: Jeannie Krumdieck, Professor and Chair of the Department of Architecture and Interior Design

Summa’s designs are deceptively deep, stemming from a highly personal and intuitive approach that results in fresh, simple, and very practicable work. 

Sheng Thao | University of Minnesota

NOMINATOR: Shawn Gaither, Adjunct Instructor

Thao’s visual skill and careful attention to culture, place, and detail make for comfortable, beautiful, and human-centered designs. 

Erh-Te Tsai | ArtCenter College of Design

NOMINATOR: David Mocarski, Department Chair, Graduate & Undergraduate Environmental Design

Artfully combining metal and stone, Tsai evokes a contemplative mood in a space for mourning and grieving as well as a gastronomical experience centered on Buddhist practices.

Sydney Tucker | Kansas State University

NOMINATOR: Michael Dudek, Associate Professor

Reflecting Tucker’s strong intellectual approach, her senior research project proposes a creative environment for children rooted in theories of cognitive development and psychoanalysis.

Alayne Deaundrey Umali | Savannah College of Art and Design

NOMINATOR: Liset Arza Robinson, Professor of Interior Design

Umali says that art is her anchor, and this is reflected in her ongoing work for a wellness and vocational facility in the Philippines that layers socioeconomic research and sustainability strategies into a strong visual framework.

Kyle Vice | Georgia State University

NOMINATOR: Hoa Vo, Assistant Professor, Interior Design

With clearly defined material palettes and stark geometries, Vice’s spaces for a trade-show stand, a dental spa, and a wellness-centered apartment complex have a striking graphic quality.

Audrey Tirta Widjaja | Savannah College of Art and Design, Atlanta

NOMINATOR: Liset Arza Robinson, Professor of Interior Design

Widjaja’s proposals for an assisted living center, a commercial office space, a primary-care clinic, and a music venue all have a strong narrative thread, with individual elements designed to tell stories.

Kelly Wu Wu | British Columbia Institute of Technology

NOMINATOR: Tiia Manson, Program Head, Bachelor of Interior Design

With carefully detailed schemes for interiors, Wu is constantly on the hunt for new amenities and experiences that can help connect people with one another in order to build community.

Meimei Yang | Ryerson University 

NOMINATOR: Jonathon Anderson, Associate Chair, Associate Professor, Director of Design + Technology Lab

Yang’s work is informed by a strong interest in the visual arts, sustainability, and digital tools. She employs a wide range of visualization techniques to express the cultural and technological layers of her work.

Haoting Yao | Indiana University Bloomington

NOMINATOR: Bryan D. Orthel, Associate Professor & Interior Design Area Coordinator

Yao dives deep into the relevance and meaning of spiritual practices in contemporary society to inform the design of a temple that helps people process their grief at losing their loved ones.

Suyang Yao | California College of the Arts

NOMINATOR: Amy Campos, Associate Professor and Chair of Interior Design

Yao eschews conventional orthogonal spaces in her designs, turning instead to organic forms, cutouts, and surface manipulation to create delightful multisensory experiences.

Isidora Stella Yubelia | Savannah College of Art and Design

NOMINATOR: Liset Arza Robinson, Professor of Interior Design

Yubelia’s projects include assisted living, workplace, hospitality, and community spaces, showcasing her versatility as a young interior designer.

Xiyue Zhang | California College of the Arts

NOMINATOR: Amy Campos, Associate Professor and Chair of Interior Design

Whether Zhang is designing a behavioral health clinic or a venue for a fashion event, she pays great attention to spatial elements that shape people’s experience of a space.