Rob believes that,” Interior design requires the perfect marriage of technical expertise, immense knowledge, and intrinsic creativity to be successful and that it offers the physical, tangible manifestation of creativity and design”
Rob Kohn, a current Denver Fundamentals of Interior Design student, was passionate about art and design from a young age but lacked the relevant formal schooling necessary to pursue his passion as a career. He had been seeking additional education and a creative pivot in his career for years. Initially, he thought it would be in visual or graphic design, but after exploring those disciplines something was still missing. A close friend of Rob’s was designing Google office interiors at the time and began to expose him to the fascinating world in which he worked. Everything catalyzed after Rob moved into a 1 bedroom apartment with his girlfriend and had a blank slate to design. From there he came to realize his passion spanned beyond his own home, and could be the fulfilling career he was after.
Robert attended undergrad at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. After graduation, Rob spent 10 years in New York City working in ad tech, media, and partnerships. He spent 4 years at Spotify helping Fortune 500 companies build music-led marketing programs on the platform and most recently, he worked on the enterprise (restaurant) business managing corporate partnerships for DoorDash.
At the end of 2019, Rob relocated from New York to Colorado to attend the Heritage program and to be closer to family. His family now lives in Santa Fe, which has been a major influence and source of inspiration in his creative journey.
Rob has found his experience at Heritage to be extremely rewarding. While the curriculum has asked a lot of him, it has been exactly what he sought: an accelerated, intensive set of courses that will position him for success in a new industry.
After graduating from Heritage, Rob plans to pursue opportunities at commercial or architectural design firms. He is especially drawn to sustainability, hospitality, and restaurant design, but he is open to any opportunity through which he can apply his schooling, grow as a designer, and gain knowledge and experience. Eventually, once better equipped with hands-on experience from experts in the field, and a well-developed portfolio, he plans to venture out and establish a firm or consultancy of his own!