The Great Depression brought with it many challenges, but it also brought a new way of thinking. Simplicity and practicality replaced ornateness and extravagance, qualities that still play a major role in design today. Construction advancements led to larger rooms and more windows.

Paired with muted colours and an emphasis on functionality, interior spaces were open yet subdued. Dark and romantic colours and fabrics were out and streamlined, pre-fabricated furniture and textiles were in.

Famed architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier influenced countless others in the field of design to embrace the intersection of buildings and nature and reject elitism and social stratification. Today, these sentiments can still be seen in modern movements such as cohousing and the integration of greenery and stone in interior design and architecture.