Meet the Designer Behind VIV/IDesigns

Vivian Wholey graduated Endicott College in May 2023, receiving her BFA in Interior Architecture with a minor in Theater. Vivian has always been passionate about Interior Design long before she ever came to Endicott. From begging her father to take her to Home Depot whenever he went, to passing the time looking at images online of design and architecture, to watching HGTV, and even to asking for an interior design kit with stencils and grid paper from her parents, Vivian has always had a love for design and a knack for being creative.

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Throughout her time at Endicott learning about the practice and field of interior architecture, she has loved doing Corporate, Education, and Commercial/Mixed-Use design. And although it wasn't taught at Endicott her year, she has always loved fashion and styling and would love to pursue Retail design to combine those two passions. She would also love to design event spaces to combine her two loves of performing and design.

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When designing, Vivian's main priorities are universal design, sustainability, and incorporating biophilia. "Why design a space if not everyone can use it?" she says. Vivian emphasizes universal design in all projects so that people of all abilities can enjoy the space. Additionally, she loves finding sustainable design solutions when designing because she cares for the environment and believes that "all buildings and designs should add to the environment rather than take away from it." One of her many strategies in accomplishing this goal is incorporating biophilia, because as she has discovered through extensive research, biophilia can lead to sustainable solutions, as well as improve the health and well-being of the occupants. 

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In terms of Vivian's design process, she always starts with extensive research, especially for her Senior Capstone project in which she wrote a 40-page research paper before starting the design process. After that, she then develops a strong concept that can be carried out throughout the design. She also always tries to do a site analysis diagram to determine building orientation, sun orientation and where the most sun comes in, the best views, noise pollution, etc. Vivian then spends a lot of time on schematics, primarily the bubble diagrams, then begins on the floor plans and custom features. No matter what, throughout the design process, Vivian always thinks of how it can relate back to her concept and be accessible for everyone.

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Overall, Vivian aims to give each of her design projects their own personality and life, hence "vivid" designs, existing symbiotically with its users. To see for yourself, browse her complete Interior Design Portfolio to get a feeling for her work and design process or look at her resume!