My wallpaper project so far

I'm now about half way through the Wallpaper project and thought I would share what I feel has influenced me so far. In terms of the re-inventing traditions element I am still keen on the Whitworth gallery exhibition called Flights of Fancy which I have already written about. I am trying to keep my work broad in terms of the ways different designs could be displayed on walls. Some are simply borders, others are feature walls and some are motifs I have yet to develop! I am hoping at the end to come up with a set of designs that can be combined to form a very busy wall or walls or be kept relatively simple with just one focus area. CAD is always an important part of my work especially for developing an idea, even if it doesn't feature in the final outcome. My colour schemes in this area are bold and bright much like Rachel Kelly's interactive wallpaper. Further area of influence are Johanna Basfords wallpapers and a drawing I found on the Leeds college of art website by a former textiles student.

Linda Florence

Whilst flicking through my Wallpaper book gathering research for the current project I came across Linda Florence. She designs bespoke wallpaper for both domestic and commerical interiors including the wallpaper in selected Ted Baker stores. Her work is built up of layers, a factor which makes it stand out to me, along with her use of colour: the greens, golds and blues really appeal to me. I want to try and employ her use of layers in my own wallpaper designs.

Flights of Fancy and Rachel Kelly

As part of this current module I visited the Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester. I have never seen as many samples of wallpaper in my life. It was so interesting to hear the history behind certain samples and how styles have evolved right up until the present day. The flights of fancy exhibition, which we were given a tour around, has definitely opened my eyes to the possibilities and ways of designing wall coverings. It showcases decorative wallpaper from the period of the 1920's and 30's. Although the very figurative prints of very colourful flowers that dominate this collection are a bit too feminine for my own taste there were some stunning paintings. The idea of having borders running either along the bottom or top of a wall with occasional bursts of flowers blooming from the foot of the wall really appeals to me, and has got my mind thinking about the ways in which slightly different designs on the same theme can be combined to each persons own taste.

Rachel Kelly is a designer working at the moment who has created her own idea called ‘Interactive wallpaper.’ She offers the client the chance to essentially decide where they would like each of her designs placing on a wall which offers individuality for the customer and means her products may appeal to a wider audience. I love this idea and is an scheme I may wish to apply in my own work for this project through having a collection of designs that work both on their own or combined with the others. Here are some examples of her work:

Lucienne Day

Whilst discussing the Festival of Britain in Critical Studies the other day, the name Lucienne Day came up in conversation. Her design career spans a massive 60 years but the fact her work is so original and innovative ensures it is still relevant today. Her best known design is Calyx (first 3 images below) which was launched at the Festival of Britain. Not all of these colourways are too my taste,although I am very keen on the purple one. The pattern is a repeat but its seemingly random nature makes this harder to spot which I like. The shapes themselves are very simple but I think it is the subtle differences between block colour and the more striped effect and each shapes size which keeps it interesting.

Here are some further examples of her work, which can now be ordered online in the form of a digitally printed fabric.