The Drawing Room: The Art of Reinvention

Founded in 2018 by Seth van den Bergh, The Drawing Room is an Atlanta-based, full-service residential interior design firm known for highly individualized, experiential interiors that balance historic context with an unexpected contemporary point of view. The studio serves the Southeast and East Coast, with projects extending to Washington, DC, New York, and Miami. The studio specializes in renovations and new construction, with its involvement often beginning during property evaluation and pre-architectural planning and continuing through spatial planning, design development, construction documentation, furnishings, and final styling.

The Roots of His Approach

For Seth, an instinct for interiors developed long before design became a career. Growing up in a family that moved often, he learned early how a home could evolve around the people living in it. “There was always something creative happening, and every time we moved I had a chance to reinvent myself in the new environment,” he says.

Today, that instinct for reinvention remains central to his approach. “At its core, our work is about creating spaces with a distinct point of view,” Seth says. Rather than imposing a signature look, The Drawing Room seeks to understand the people behind each project: “We spend the time trying to curate what might be the best version of the person we’re working with.”

The Cambria Connection

Seth first became familiar with Cambria while studying interior design, when the brand was part of his school’s material library. What has kept Cambria part of his material palette, however, is the confidence it brings to the design process. Its consistency allows Seth to visualize a surface digitally with a strong understanding of how it will translate once installed, helping align the design presented to a client with the finished result.

Performance is equally important. For Seth, a surface should support the way a client actually lives without becoming something they have to worry about maintaining or protecting from everyday use. “Cambria offers an opportunity for people to be comfortable with the product because you know it’s going to perform,” he says. That reliability gives both designer and homeowner confidence long after a project is complete.

Standout Design: A Tudor in the 2020s

This renovation of a 1931 Tudor Revival residence in Indianapolis began with no ordinary clients. One of the homeowners had spent more than four decades leading a global commercial interior design practice, bringing an unusually informed perspective to the process, as well as an understanding of the trust required between client and designer. That trust gave Seth room to push beyond the expected. “They were willing to embrace craftsmanship, risks, and ideas that might feel uncomfortable in less confident hands,” he says. 

The Drawing Room sought to restore the home’s architectural rhythm, much of which had been lost through previous renovations. The team reintroduced distinct rooms in place of an open-concept layout, while incorporating walnut cabinetry, herringbone flooring, arched openings, and other Tudor references reinterpreted through a contemporary lens.

The homeowners’ collection of sculpture and Impressionist paintings became natural focal points throughout the interior. Against them, Seth wanted the Cambria surfaces to be intentionally quieter. In the kitchen, Inverness Frost in a Cambria Matte® finish was used across the countertops, range backsplash, and island with a modern interpretation of a waterfall edge where, instead of carrying the design to the floor, there is a shortened mitered drop that gives way to the walnut cabinetry below.

In the adjoining butler’s pantry, Wentwood™ in a Cambria Matte finish introduces a warmer, richer note. The change gives the space its own identity while supporting the sense of progression between rooms. 

Cambria as a Supporting Actor

At The Drawing Room, knowing when a material should make a statement and when it should step back is an important part of creating a balanced interior. “When I design interiors, I liken them to a movie. You can only have so many lead actors,” Seth says. “Our stars tend to be…the things that really make the client’s personality stand out.” In the Tudor renovation, those leading roles belong to the elements that reveal the homeowners and the history of the house: the art, sculpture, walnut detailing, and arched openings.

Cambria was selected to complement those features rather than compete with them.