“Crane’s facile handling of gorgeous birds…has never been excelled,” gushed A.V. Sugden and J.L. Edmondson in their “History of English Wallpaper,” written in 1926. Almost a century later, their compliment still rings true. “Macaw,” designed by Walter Crane for Jeffrey & Company, was originally created as a display piece for the manufacturer’s exhibit at the...
Though understated in character, this faux-marble sidewall required an impressive amount of attention to detail on behalf of the manufacturers. The larger background patterns are block-printed in subtle tones of light grey, blue and pink, and the top layer of whitish veins is painstakingly hand painted. Kept for reference in the archives of American wallpaper...
Dating c. 1900, this feminine French sidewall belongs to a class referred to as “bathroom” or “sanitary” wallpapers. This designation is based on a water-resistant varnish that coats the panel, making it safe to hang the paper near the tub, and possible to wash it with less risk of damage or bleeding colors. For the...
In this frieze, printed by the Gledhill Wallpaper co. in 1906-7, tall, slender trees stand in the foreground, growing from a well-manicured lawn like elongated stalks of broccoli. A paved, white sidewalk runs horizontally across the length of the frieze, branching off in the center of the panel and leading to a majestic landscape of...
The weather in New York City is playing a funny joke right now. Visible from the windows of the Cooper Hewitt are sunny blue skies, trees with new green leaves, tulips, daffodils and some cheeky birds flirting with each other. After gray winter months of slush and ice, the city beckons with the promise of...
From the archives, an Object of the Day post on one of the design works featured in Rebeca Méndez Selects.
Vertically stacked archways and medallions made of Moorish tiles frame views of architecture from far off lands in this sidewall from the last quarter of the nineteenth-century. An Indian Gazebo, Turkish Mosque, French Chateau and even an onion-domed Russian church all make appearances. Palm trees, flocks of storks, waterfalls and elegant stone staircases add to...
Neutral tones and subtle pattern define this mid-century Scandinavian wallpaper. Large, airy blossoms of Queen Anne’s lace float like fluffy fireworks on a light gray ground. The larger blooms are composed of hundreds of tiny white flowers supported by a framework of dark gray stems. As in nature, a single bright red flower marks the...
Gerd Göran’s Slån wallpaper design shows pale blue dots arranged in rows within an irregular, light-gray net on white ground. The pattern is at first reminiscent of bubble wrap, or maybe even caviar, if you’re feeling fancy. Swedish speakers, however, might realize that the name of the paper hints at the designer’s inspiration. Slån (sloe,...
