Element Sessions: Answering the Age-Old Question of What is Contemporary Design

 

How do you nail down the definition of contemporary? Ask an expert like Suzanne DeRusha, president of Suzanne Kimberly Design. In this episode of Element Sessions, an Element Designs podcast, host Sean Heath explored the fundamental principles of creating successful contemporary designs with the noted designer.

So, does contemporary design have a firm or fixed definition? Yes and no.

“Modern and contemporary are often transposed or used together, and that’s because typically consumers don’t know the differences,” DeRusha said. “But the style itself is always changing. Trying to keep your finger on that pulse is like knowing what each manufacturer is thinking and who their innovative brains are.”

That’s because ever-changing technology and functional engineering constitute a big part of contemporary style and design, DeRusha explained. Cabinet hardware function has come a long way with soft-close hinges and lift-up doors, for example. These are functional upgrades but represent a new sleek aesthetic that is prominent in contemporary design.

In this episode, DeRusha and Heath discussed the old debate of form versus function in design and the newer question of whether advances in materials drive design, or do design requirements cause material evolutions.

“We are living and designing in a time that all the elements are merging in perfect harmony,” DeRusha said.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the AEC Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @AECMKSL
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

human-centered
How Human-Centered Design Led to a Startup Accelerator for Education: A Conversation with Transcend Network’s Co-founder Michael Narea
June 20, 2025

The convergence of human-centered design and education innovation is reshaping how edtech ventures emerge and scale. As AI enables hyper-efficiency and bootstrapped entrepreneurship becomes more viable, the real differentiator is empathy—founders who listen deeply to users before building solutions. A McKinsey study of 300 public companies found that design-led organizations significantly outperformed their peers, with…

Read More
care navigation
AI-Powered Care Navigation Reduces Healthcare Spend and Improves Patient Access
June 20, 2025

The U.S. healthcare system is strained by rising costs, uneven quality, and fragmented care navigation. Employers are bearing the brunt, spending more without always securing better care for their teams. According to the RAND Corporation, one effective strategy is to “change their network and benefit designs to encourage patients to use lower‑priced, higher‑value providers…

Read More
edge computing
Building the Wireless Future: Low-Power IoT, Edge Computing, and the End of the Gs
June 19, 2025

As the global race to 6G heats up, telecom providers, governments, and tech companies are investing billions to advance the next generation of hyperconnected infrastructure. European operators urge regulators to release more spectrum to stay competitive, while U.S. programs like the USDA’s ReConnect have funneled over $1 billion into rural fiber backhaul. Meanwhile, companies like…

Read More
healthcare operations
Healthcare Operations Improve with AI That Unites Data, Automation, and Ethics
June 18, 2025

Generative AI has captured the public imagination, but its most transformative use cases may lie far from flashy consumer tools. In healthcare operations, where complexity, inefficiency, and fragmentation remain persistent challenges, AI is now driving measurable improvements. Research suggests AI-enabled healthcare systems could cut administrative costs by up to $360 billion in the U.S. alone….

Read More