An arch in interior design is an element that has been widely used from ancient times to the present day. The purpose of the arch is to overlap an opening between supports or a wall opening.
Usually the arch has a rounded shape, which is called arched. Once this form was the only one and was determined by design features, but then semicircular and pointed arched openings appeared..
An ordinary room in a standard apartment is completely transformed if an arch appears in it. This architectural element brings a touch of solemnity, elegance to the atmosphere..
Types of arches in the interior
- Semicircular. This type of arches comes from France. They appeared in the twelfth century. Usually there is an ornament along the top of the arched opening. As support – stone columns.
- Persian. Arches of this type are shaped like half an ellipse. Typical for the East.
- Horseshoe. The Moroccan style often uses horseshoe-like arches: the vault extends over the ends of the base plate. The upper part of the horseshoe arch can be rounded, or have a lancet shape.
- Arrowhead. Standard shape for Gothic structures: two smooth arcs intersecting at an acute angle. Often found in an interior with an arch.
- Tudor. It retains the shape of a pointed arch, but the angle at which its ends converge is more than 90 degrees. It is often used to design partitions between separate zones in a room. Such arches became widespread in England during the Tudor period..
- Renaissance. The arch is semicircular, has a central keystone, decorative frieze and cornice.
Appointment
An arch in interior design can play a variety of roles, be both a decorative ornament and the main semantic element. It can organically exist in any room: hall or living room, bedroom or nursery, hallway or wardrobe – an arch is appropriate everywhere.
If the ceilings are too high, it will help return the room to proportionality and thereby make it more comfortable, if low, it will visually raise them, increasing the volume. They will make a simple interior refined, and add a sublime touch to the luxurious atmosphere of a country house..
Openings. An interesting interior with an arch can be created by replacing standard door and window openings. Of course, windows and doors will also have to be used non-standard, but this solution justifies itself, especially if the main style of the room is classic, Mediterranean Spanish or Oriental.
Zones. The modern planning trend – the rejection of interior partitions – is very functional, but often deprives the room of the comfort and intimacy that everyone needs.
An arch will come to the rescue: an extended doorway, covered with an arched vault, will separate one zone of the apartment from another, and at the same time preserve a certain amount of privacy for each. Most often, such a solution can be found at the junction of the entrance area and the living room, kitchen and dining area, bedroom and dressing room..
Transitions. Arches in the interior can be used to decorate transition zones, for example, in small corridors between the bedroom and the study, or between the entrance and living areas. In such corridors, not only the entrance, but also the vault throughout the entire area has a semicircular shape.
It turns out something similar to the classic galleries, often found on the streets of ancient European cities. This is a very beautiful architectural technique, and it makes sense to enhance it with an appropriate design that will attract increased attention..
For example, semicircular vaults can be painted with paints, or laid out with mosaic tiles. In a loft-style room, brickwork on the vault will look organic, and moldings and complex floral ornaments made of plaster or polyurethane are suitable for rococo or classics.
To emphasize the expressiveness of the interior with an arch, you can decorate the walls under the vaulted ceiling with paintings that match the general style of the room..
Decoration. It is not always possible to build a real arch, sometimes it is much easier and cheaper to create an imitation of it from polyurethane or drywall. Such an arch can be of any shape, it is easy to make, but it looks no worse “real”.
Usually they resort to imitation of arches when they want to allocate space on the wall for a large mirror, a beautiful rack, or a television panel. The use of false arches allows you to add style and additional volume to the room, as well as highlight individual interior elements.
Material
The arch material in interior design should emphasize its style.
A rock. The most traditional are stone and brick arches. They look good in various styles – loft, country, Provence, Mediterranean. To lay out the arched vault, stones of a special shape, resembling a trapezoid, are used..
Only qualified craftsmen can do such work, then you can be sure that the stone vault will not collapse on your head. The resulting vault does not need additional finishing and in itself serves as a decoration of the room.
Wood. A wooden arch is both beautiful and practical. Depending on what kind of wood you choose, the strength of the structure and its price will vary. You can always choose something that suits all indicators, and will emphasize any interior style you choose.
Drywall. For the decoration of arches in the interior, artificial materials are also used, for example, drywall. It is lightweight, it can be bent, creating the necessary arched profile, decorative elements made of polyurethane or wood are easily attached to it, it can be laid out with tiles under a brick or under a natural stone.
Polyurethane. This synthetic material is resistant to moisture and ultraviolet radiation, it can be painted and attached to almost any surface with glue – light decorative elements will hold securely.
Cornices, moldings, rosettes, columns, capitals and bases for them are formed from it. By composing various elements, you can build very complex arched structures, suitable for any style.
