New Zealand artist Emma Hayes has collaborated with Walnut Wallpaper, the Los Angeles based wallpaper showroom, to form LA Colorscapes, a unique collection of six wallpaper mural designs. Created in response to the light and colours of Los Angeles and its scenic surrounds, the launch coincides with the opening of the new expanded Walnut Wallpaper showroom in the heart of Beverly Boulevard, LA.
The stunning collection was inspired after Emma visited LA and spent time with the Walnut team last summer. Writes Emma — “I was lucky to visit LA at the end of summer. What beautiful blue skies and endless sunny days! I was struck by the expanses of blue vistas that blended into perfect gradients of colour at sunset. It struck me that these colour gradients were everywhere — gradients of the blues of the sea to the blues of the sky; honey sands to powder blue skies; desert tones to sunset hues.
I was also conscious that what separates New Zealand and LA is the Pacific Ocean. We are on one side, and Walnut, the other. Water has been an ongoing fascination for me in my work, and I liked the idea of representing this in some way… an endless repeat pattern of waves and ocean white caps between LA and New Zealand. You will see, especially in the Colorscapes about the sea, the brushstrokes evoke waves and white caps. In Sandscape and Desertscape, they start to represent haze or a mirage of colour.”
The six stunning murals are available on a non-woven paper, pearlescent finish. Commercial grade qualities are available on request. Designs are available to purchase exclusively via Walnut Wallpaper and Emma Hayes.
Emma has had a very busy year, with her company Emma Hayes Textiles releasing Sediment, a new wallcovering design for 2019. First launched in Toronto earlier this year as part of the Toronto Design Festival and part of the presentation at ICFF in New York, the series draws inspiration from sedimentary rock in New Zealand and how it references layers of geology, time and history.
Sediment — Earth
Quite a contrast from the softer colours in LA Colorscapes, Sediment comes in three rich hues — Turquoise, Earth and Forest.
Visit emmahayes.co.nz to find out more.
Styling by Juliette Wanty / Photography by Dean Foster