By Leonie Walker
Recently I have come across several designs that take inspiration from urban living and city landscapes, offerings some refreshingly original design motifs and patterns.
One example is Timorous Beasties fantastic Toile collection. Unlike traditional French toile designs of charming pastoral scenes, Beasties’ toiles offer a contemporary twist on the French classic. Their wallpaper and fabric motifs display a surprising and honest depiction of city life. Iconic cityscapes, park life, crime scenes, promenading and rude boys are just a few of the engaging narratives that take place in these designs. There are differing toiles for London, New York, Glasgow and Edinburgh, and each with its own feel and cityscape.
The New York Toile
The London Toile
The Glasgow Toile
The Edinburgh Toile
Another example of urban themed decor is Marimekko’s new Siirtolapuutarha range. Made up of a selection of crockery and textiles, the pieces have a lovely illustrative design motif that eludes to cityscapes and urban living. Sure enough, the design for this range is inspired by city life, in particular small city gardens. The word siirtolapuutarha is a Finnish term that refers to small community plots of land in the city that are used for gardens and allotments. Each piece tells a different part of the siirtolapuurtarha story, from ‘a morsel of nature in the urban jungle’ to the ‘tiny gardens tucked into the nooks of urban life’ – Marimekko.
Siirtolapuutarha bowl, available at Skandium
Oiva Siirtolapuutarha coffee cup, available from Nord
Siirtolapuutarha plate, available from Skandium
Siirtolapuutarha red coated cotton
So you need look no further than out onto the street to find something new to be inspired by.
This article first appeared on the Cambridge Evening News website.
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