Interior design as a bona fide profession and a concept as essential to the completion of a house as power and water was born in the USA. Like the popular culture that has evolved around art and architecture in the United States, interior design in a multi-million dollar and very serious business whose visual design skills have pervasive influence in many spheres. The flippant stereotype of the curtain draping decorator has been transformed into professional artist with quantifiable credentials and a maximum of stylistic authority.

The canvas is the house, the designer's palette a myriad influences from the prehistoric to the Renaissance, minimalism to the opulent and in doing so, he or she creates a home, often a showplace and sometimes a museum.

Interior Designers set trends, create conventions and establish an ethos for the manner in which people live. The most prominent are flown all over the world gain entree into the private enclaves of the rich, famous and powerful creating inspired environments in accordance with the lifestyles and personalities of the occupants. They wield the considerable power of style over some very important people most of whom would be more likely to fly to the moon on gossamer wings than give carte blanche to even the most loyal employee. But today, a man or woman is judged not such by their clothes as in days past but by their habitats. And they will throw their iron clad designer doors open to only one magazine who will duly photograph and document the results of their designer's decorative wizardry - if, its Editor-in-Chief deems it in good taste.