"THISTLES & STARS"
hand blocked wallpaper
collaboration with L'Atelier d'Offard
I am pleased to announce a collaboration with L'Atelier d'Offard, a world-renowned manufacturer from France (Tours). They have honored me by adapting one of my designs into wallpaper (and it is now officially available). As an admirer of William Morris' work, I couldn't have dreamed of anything better.
Atelier d’Offard perpetuates the know-how required for creation of hand blocked wallpapers as produced by the great factories of the 18th and 19th centuries. Specialized in the reproduction of old wallpapers but also in the contemporary creation, the manufacture works for a great number of prestigious places.
We had the pleasure of discovering their work in 2018, in Florence, Italy, when we visited the magnificent Officina profumo-farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella.
"THISTLES & STARS"
I created the "Thistles & Stars" pattern in 2021, for the endpapers of my book Forgotten Gods. It is a motif that evokes the theme of my book and links the vegetal interlacing with celestial symbols. "Thistles & Stars" is a contemplation of the sky from the forest, a pattern that brings earth and sky together to accompany reverie.
To create this wallpaper, Atelier D'Offard uses the beautiful traditional technique of hand block printing:
The paper is made especially for the Atelier d'Offard. It is first painted - background coating - using large silk brushes (respecting this ancestral gesture guarantees the pictorial qualities of their wallpapers). The paints used are made from natural pigments and binder (rabbit skin glue), the colors respect the principles of conservation and give the wallpapers brightness and mattness. Then, printed repeat after repeat, and possibly color after color, the "Thistles & Stars" pattern is painted by applying the board with a manual press. The pictorial layers are thus deposited, giving the finished product the material, the impasto and the chromatic richness that allow it to bear the true name of wallpaper.
It is now possible to order the wallpaper "Thistles & Stars" by contacting the manufacture (Please read the details below):
In order to harmonize this wallpaper with your interior, you have the possibility to select the background color as well as the color of the pattern (or several colors).
The wallpaper is delivered in rolls of 50cm/10m, at a price of 294€/roll (one background colour plus one pattern colour).
It is necessary to order a minimum of 3 rolls when ordering, that is to say 15m² (the technique used requires great care, calibration phases and tool changes. Therefore, during the production phase, it is preferable to make a large yardage).
Here is a sample of what the company sent me. My first love is the burgundy and gold version, as I originally conceived this design, but I really like the blue / gold, red / gold and the plum / gold / purple version that I discovered.
Contact the Atelier d'Offard at this address: contact@atelierdoffard.com
Thank you to Atelier d'Offard for this collaboration, I am delighted to work with a manufacturer of this quality.