Evergreen Design Elements that Define Contemporary Interiors: 7 Features that Last the Test of Time
When it comes to forward-thinking interior design, adaptability, and timelessness are two key factors that can guarantee a home will look just as current years from now as it does today. One interior style that makes use of them more than any other is: contemporary. By borrowing elements from several prominent styles and combining them into a harmonic whole, contemporary interiors stay current even as trends move on. But what are the components that remain constant even with this ever-changing fashion? We explore seven evergreen design elements that define contemporary interiors.
Contemporary interior style was a natural evolution of midcentury-modern aesthetics and was first coined as its own term around the 1970s. Signifying a mix of predominant styles at the time, it borrowed heavily from popular aesthetics such as modernism, postmodernism, and Art Deco. By combining elements of each to varying degrees, contemporary homes reflected a certain in-the-know-quality without risking an imbalance in favor of one or the other.
Fast forward a half-century and contemporary interiors are still evolving at a rapid speed. With the introduction of farmhouse style, Japandi design, or minimalism, there are more aesthetics to choose from than ever, and contemporary interiors continue to pull reference points from all of them for a unique, future-thinking look. Through clever juxtaposition and layering of different accent pieces against an often constant modern shell, they can easily be adapted over time to ensure homes stay current.
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That being said, there are certain elements that can almost certainly be found in any contemporary interior. We take a look at seven of them through 49 projects from our ArchDaily database.
1- Minimalist Furniture
Upon entering a contemporary home, one thing you certainly won’t find is an excess of furniture. As Ludwig Mies van der Rohe aptly put it: “less is more.” Staying true to this idea as well as pared-back aesthetics popularized by the Bauhaus school and De Stijl art movement, a lot of contemporary interiors rely on using only the bare necessities to function on a day-to-day basis. Built-ins can be a clever way to create extra storage that doesn’t crowd the room and hides clutter in plain sight. By sticking to only a few pieces, usually of high quality, contemporary interiors put emphasis on craftsmanship and the powerful effect of reduction.
The Corner House / RUE arquitectos
024 Apartment / ŠA atelier
Residence 195 / Ampuero Yutronic
Interior MFN / INT2architecture
Alonso House / Sebastian Arquitectos
Axis House / LCGA Design
BE Apartment / MZNO
2- Mixed Materials
It’s not just the furniture that counts on quality in contemporary interiors. An emphasis on materials is paramount, and you’ll be able to spot a contemporary style by its mix of multiple high-end materials such as natural woods, organic fibers, polished concrete, or marble. This creates a rich visual context despite the otherwise pared-down aesthetics and lets accent pieces or walls that contrast in the structure make a powerful statement by themselves.
Oneness & Otherness Apartment / Shiran Ishay
Nicolai Paris Apartment / noa* network of architecture
Tree House / ST Design Studio
Translucence House / Fougeron Architecture
Apartament DL / StudioLIM
Twins Apartment / Paralelo 30 Arquitetura
Palm Frond Retreat / Koichi Takada Architects
3- Open Floor Plans
In another nod to pre-existing fashions typical of contemporary interiors, the open floor plan found in many of them originated as part of the industrial revolution and the rise of the International Style in architecture. Thanks to the technological advancements of the early 20th century, open floor plans abandoned neatly defined individual spaces in favor of one structural unit that flowed naturally from the kitchen to the dining room to the living area. Take a look at contemporary interiors today, and almost all of them have stuck to this airy erosion of boundaries.
Deep Gray Apartment / Azovskiy&Pahomova architects
ML Apartment / flipê arquitetura
Ichijo-toma Apartment / kooo architects
MB Apartment / Bokey Grant
Housing and Ateliers in Rue Polonceau / YUA studio d’architecture
House in Uraga / note architects
Ceppo Apartment / Meireles+Pavan Arquitetura
4- Clean Lines
Closely related to the thought of industrialization and technology: an affinity for clean lines and streamlined, organic shapes. Contemporary interiors prioritize strong visual lines as part of their overall look and feel — but that doesn’t mean circles are out of the question. By combining straight shapes with circular or oval ones, contemporary homes ensure that reference points continue to evolve depending on the predominant styles of the time.
DÔ Apartment / flipê arquitetura
Casa de Silva / ICONCAST
Canning Street House / Foomann Architects
Flat in Zverynas / HEIMA architects
Yugen House / Studio Gabriel Bordin
1927 Apartment / Kilo / Honc
Avila Warehouse Conversion / Allaround Lab
5- Muted Color Palette with Accents
Contemporary interiors are defined across the board by strongly relying on neutral colors such as white, black, grey, or beige. That being said, the sophistication of the color palette is increased by placing emphasis on decorative accents and elements that often belong to a family on the opposite end of the color wheel like blue, green, red, or yellow. Colorful walls are a rarity, though if they are present, they are usually mitigated by sticking to all neutrals for the surrounding furniture in order to achieve a contemporary, balanced look.
Inside Outside House / David Coleman Architecture
Momenttum Apartment / Studio Boscardin.Corsi Arquitetura
Praia Mansa Apartment / Leandro Garcia
Cranberry Pavilion / Wright Architects
House HD / MDDM STUDIO
Mirror Maze Apartment / YAEL PERRY | INTERIOR DESIGNER
Langdon House / Estudi E. Torres Pujol
6- Statement Lighting
Given the reduced, decluttered look of most contemporary interiors, extravagant lighting is often used to make a statement in an otherwise curtailed space. Larger-than-life chandeliers or big globular lighting structures are combined with a recess or indirect lighting to complement the even glow emitted by the latter with dramatic structures that act as additional visual highlights. Rather than combining multiple lamps within a room, one central decorative piece will be juxtaposed with streamlined fixtures that create a bright background for it to really shine.
Hangzhou Spiral Villa / Tsutsumi and Associates
Bluish House / Studio Colnaghi Arquitetura
The Unfolding Home / ACOS (A Collection of Stories)
The Octagon of Pelayo Apartment / Piano Piano Studio
In Plain Sight Apartment / Nakworks
D. Carlos I Apartment / CFarquitetos
Mazanka Apartment / Makhno Studio
7- Floor to Ceiling Glass
Glass walls are often used in contemporary interior design to visually continue the open floor aesthetic while adding an important soundproofing element and underlining the emphasis on material. They also allow natural light to flow through a home — an added bonus for homeowners who prefer not to turn on the lights every time they enter a room. Floor-to-Ceiling windows are another staple of the contemporary look. By creating uninterrupted views and dissolving boundaries between inside and outside, they continue strong visual lines indefinitely and connect their future-forward interiors to the ever-changing outdoor scenery.
Cork Trees House / TRAMA arquitetos
House of Courts / DADA & Partners
The White House / Robson Rak Architects and Interior Designers
NORM House / Alain Carle Architecte
Weekend Getaway / SAK Designs
The Glass Blocks Duplex / Tal Goldsmith Fish Design Studio
Bagh Shahr Villa / Experience Studio
Explore more interiors that make us of indirect light in this My ArchDaily folder created by the author.
This article is part of an ArchDaily series that explores features of interior architecture, from our own database of projects. Every month, we will highlight how architects and designers are utilizing new elements, new characteristics, and new signatures in interior spaces around the world. As always, at ArchDaily, we highly appreciate the input of our readers. If you think we should mention specific ideas, please submit your suggestions.
This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: The Contemporary Home, proudly presented by BUILDNER.
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