Iconic designer melds modern and classic styles
Washington, DC-based designer Mary Douglas Drysdale founded her full-service interior design firm, Drysdale Design Associates, in 1980, and has since become a recognizable, groundbreaking voice in the industry.
Drysdale, who grew up in Charlottesville, VA and was educated in Paris and New York City, has a wealth of international influences to draw upon for her designs. Drysdale’s designs are recognizable for their unique marriage of the modern and the traditional, seamlessly melding her diverse design influences to create thoughtfully crafted spaces with a truly American flavor. Her work often features classical architectural guidelines and forms with unexpected pops of the contemporary, often via eye-catching “modern” color palettes.
However, Drysdale’s style never trumps her clients’ needs. Her designs are always carefully tailored to suit her clients’ lifestyles – she considers herself a “problem solver” above all.
Throughout her career as a designer, Drysdale’s distinctive designs have made her a consistent influencer within the industry, garnering numerous awards and recognitions, including being named to House Beautiful’s Top 100 five years in a row, as well as being named to the publication’s Family Tree of American Design. Additionally, her work has been recognized by Traditional Home magazine, This Old House, the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum Interior Design Awards, Kohler’s Design Museum and many other organizations.
