Stitched Puzzle is from David Rockwell’s first collection of wallcoverings designed for Maya Romanoff. Rockwell has designed everything from stage sets and hotels to playgrounds and home furnishings, and with this collection has created a line of wall surfaces available for commercial sale. Stitched Puzzle was inspired by a Maya Romanoff design classic titled Weathered Walls first produced in 1978. Having the look and coloring of tanned leather or possibly aged parchment, Weathered Walls is hand dyed in the company’s Chicago studio and is available in a number of rich, saturated hues. Rockwell’s addition of stitching gives the surface a fresh and tailored look while the secondary pattern which echoes the stitching gives the design a wonderful sense of depth. Applied in a meandering fashion the stitching evokes a playfulness while still maintaining a sense of order. The stitching is tone on tone so adds a subtle embellishment and another texture to the already tactile surface.
The Rockwell Group, the architecture and design practice Rockwell founded in 1984, has received numerous design awards, including a 2008 National Design Award and the 2001 Presidential Award for the Grand Central Terminal restoration and renovation. One of the hallmarks of Rockwell interiors is the unexpected mix of textures, patterns, and materials used to create an environment or evoke an emotional response.
Maya Romanoff has been creating innovative wallcoverings since 1969. A deep red colorway of Weathered Walls is among the Maya Romanoff wallcoverings in the museum’s permanent collection.
This week, we are celebrating work of National Design Award winners, on the occasion of the announcement of this year’s honorees. The annual Awards program celebrates design, in a variety of disciplines, as a vital humanistic tool in shaping the world. The Rockwell Group won for Interior Design in 2008.
