Contemporary vs. Modern Style: What’s the Difference?

Someone who has substantial knowledge of architecture, furniture, home style and interior design is quite familiar with the words contemporary and modern. So much so that many people have started using both words to mean the same thing. However, they both are quite distinct from each other. Yes, they have many similar characteristics, but the two designs have very different histories as well as techniques.

History of Modern Interior Design

The modern style has always been about expressing oneself and being out there, it was started in the 19^th century as a revolution against the interior decoration movements of that time. Modern style was "form follows function" of the Bauhaus. It was all about wide floor plans and clean lines. As time progressed, this style transformed into Midcentury Modern Design and Postmodernism Design. Postmodernism is very different from the modern style.

History of Contemporary Interior Design

The Contemporary Style consisted of many interior designs merged together before it got an identity of its own. It became all the rage in the 1970s. It has a few hints of Modernism and Postmodernism here and there, but it also has many of its own originals ideas like Art Deco, Deconstructivism, Futurism and more. Contemporary mainly adapts any style which is the “in” thing presently.

Modern interior designs like midcentury modern and retro have become popular now, that is why people get confused by these terms and use them synonymously. Modern design has become a part of contemporary design.

Modern Interior Design

Modern design has a very neat and clean approach, with white open spaces rather than closed. They use a minimalist angle and believe in less being more, that is why they use furniture and decorations quite carefully. Everything ties up together, there’s an assymertry which is quite the opposite of gaudy traditional interior designs.

A house with a modern interior will usually have vast white walls with huge glass windows, paired with minimal decorations of neutral earthy tones and a polished wooden floor to give that modern yet natural look. The windows often cover the length of the whole wall which contributes to the whole natural open feeling. Furniture is quite scattered so as not to give it a suffocating look.

Modern interior design basics include:

• Colors: white is the predominant color, with black brown being used for a little depth. A pop of color is used here and there, but sparsely.
• Furnishings: metal, chrome or steel are common materials used for furniture. As well as granite and glass table tops.
• Walls: usually it is always solid white walls, but one wall can be painted a different color to break the monotony.
• Flooring: Granite, marble and concrete floors are generally used. Some area rugs in single colors or geometric patterns can add a bit of definition to the plain floor.
• Window Treatments: Plain curtains and blinds are used for windows, never anything frilly with tassels.

Modern design is defined by long, low furniture and natural materials like teak wood, leather, and linen upholstery. The style is straight and simple, while the furniture does not touch the floor and is raised up to emphasize on the openness.

Plywood, clear and white plastics, and metal are also widely used in modern design. In a strictly modern interior, neutral tones of brown, white, cream are only used. Walls are plain white blank spaces. Rugs are woolen and also earthy toned. Floors are bare wood or cement.

A pinch of color is injected here and there, like a painting or a sculpture. A piece of furniture might be of a very bright color if everything else in the room is toned down and mellow.

Contemporary Interior Design

Contemporary interior design characteristics are similar to modern design as it also plays with white walls, large windows and high ceilings; however, it embraces more natural materials. Modern design uses industrial materials like concrete, steel and granite, using very sharp linear designs. On the other hand, contemporary interior design uses soft, round lines.

A much extensive color palette is used compare to the whites blacks and deep browns of modern design. Contemporary design values expressionism and one usually adds in a touch of their own self to the interior to personalize it. An occasional quirky-out of-place furniture piece adds a touch of pizzazz, giving the place a lot more meaning than just some white walls and furniture pieces thrown in together. While modern interior design can perfectly be said to adopt a minimalist perspective, contemporary design typically comprises of elements which define the person who will be residing in the spaces being decorated.

Contemporary design basics include:

• Colors: nude colors like cream, white, tan, beige, gray and brown are the base color for a contemporary look. Bright color highlights are often used, but not to the extent of over-powering and dominating the scene. The neons merely add a spark.
• Furnishings: flat surfaces in light-colored woods, glass, stainless steel or chrome are used. Silk, cotton, linen, and wool are the natural fabric textiles in earthy colors, with the exceptional pop of color or pattern used to accentuate the look.
• Walls: The walls are painted with nude colors with one bright colored wall to make the look less bland. Patterned wallpaper is also used in light colors, as long as the patterns are soft and not too dominating.
• Flooring: Floors are kept bare. They are done in wood, cement, stone or laminate, with the occasional area rug in a plain design. Wall-to-wall carpeting, when done, is in one neutral color.
• Window Treatments: It is better to have no treatments, just like modern.. But, if one really needs to then blinds or curtains can be put up in a solid color.

Contemporary styles are always changing and adapting. They urge one to express and accept. There is a sense of freedom in this interior style. Contemporary rooms tell about the lives of the people who inhabit them, and as one keeps changing, so do the style of the rooms. Good contemporary design is almost always a work-in-progress.

The belief of contemporary design is to be more open-ended, as time keeps changing and people keep evolving, it is easier to add in new bits and colors into the interior to reflect one’s tastes and interests. This flexibility to add one’s own touches no matter how drastic to a look can be done in contemporary interior design, not in a modern interior design.