Interior Provocations 2026

Faux marble, AI-generated floor plans, a planetarium that squeezes the universe into a single room: interiors have always been good at faking it. This fall, Pratt Institute’s Interior Provocations symposium puts that habit under the microscope with #Synthetic, a one-day program on its Brooklyn campus. Expect a full day of talks, two exhibitions and a keynote on what it really means for a room to be assembled, copied or simulated.

Event Overview

Key Highlights

• Three ways into “synthetic.” The program is built around three subthemes: the Synthetic Designer (or Author), the Synthetic Environment and the Synthetic Surface.
• AI authorship under scrutiny. The designer track asks whose values get baked into AI-generated floor plans and renderings, and traces the question back to pattern books and decorating manuals.
• Eight paper presentations. Two Student Union sessions range from simulated lacquer in early modern Venice and Second Empire surfaces to generative AI seen through a disability studies lens.
• Keynote by Jenny Sabin. The Cornell University professor and Design Tech department chair presents “Biosynthetic Design: Towards Adaptive Architecture” at 4:30 pm.
• A 12-project gallery show. The #Synthetic Exhibit at the Juliana Curran Terian Design Center Gallery covers knitted atmospheres, wearable tech and the Crystal Palace’s Alhambra Court as synthetic Orientalism.
• A cabinet of curiosities. A second display, the #Synthetic Cabinet of Curiosities, sits in the Pratt Library’s Alumni Reading Room, which also hosts the evening reception.
• A theme that walks the talk. The organizers note the call text was co-written and edited with claude.ai, and the event’s key image was made with Midjourney.

Why Interior Provocations 2026 Matters

Founded by Pratt faculty from Interior Design and the History of Art and Design, Interior Provocations exists to put practitioners, historians and theorists of the interior in the same room, and 2026 follows eight earlier editions dating back to 2017. #Synthetic lands right where the profession feels uneasy, asking how AI tools, simulated materials and immersive spaces reshape authorship and authenticity. Designers, educators and students weighing AI in their own practice will get the most out of the day.

With the call closed and the lineup set, all that’s left is to clear your Friday and decide which kind of fake you find most convincing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I still submit a paper or exhibition proposal?

No. The organizers have closed the call for abstracts, and the 2026 presenters and exhibitors are already announced.

Where on campus do the sessions and exhibits take place?

Introductions, both paper sessions and the keynote are in the Student Union. The exhibits are split between the Design Center Gallery and the Pratt Library’s Alumni Reading Room, where the 5:30 pm reception wraps the day.

Who should I contact with questions?

Write to the organizing team at the email in the overview table above; it is run by faculty from Pratt’s Interior Design and History of Art and Design departments.