west elm Rugs by Artists
This season, we invited a few of our favorite frequent collaborators to apply their artistic talents to designing new rugs exclusively for west elm. The results—Lourdes Sanchez’s vivid bull’s-eye, Shelley Goldberg’s romantic take on a traditional paisley, John-Paul Phillipe’s signature squiggles and David Stark’s faux-zebra crafted entirely from jute—are works of art for the floor.
Lourdes Sanchez based her Bull’s-Eye Rug on one of her own watercolor paintings, combing rich colors and muted tones to create this vibrant, graphic piece in softly tufted wool. A longtime textile designer and artist, the Brooklyn-based Lourdes often works with motifs inspired by the natural world, vintage prints and tribal patterns (as well as more unusual inspirations like industrial detritus and random markings), and many of these elements can be seen here.
Textile designer Shelley Goldberg’s Island Paisley Rug injects a bit of whimsy into a traditional pattern, with botanical silhouettes blooming in sophisticated shades on a rich espresso background. Shelley often creates unique juxtapositions of pattern and texture by combining contemporary design with traditional construction methods, and this rug is no exception. As ever, asymmetry and the innovative use of line and color characterize her work.
The two rugs by the multi-talented painter and designer John-Paul Philippé make the most of abstract lines and soothing neutral hues. His Sketch Rug uses a linear motif to create a composition with surprising depth, while his Art Rug plays with pale tones and abstract shapes to create a piece of sophisticated art. It was this distinctly modernist style that original put Jean-Paul on the map as a painter, and he now lends his clean, graphic style to projects as diverse as the design of textiles, furniture, murals, large-scale sculpture and even a private chapel in the Dominican Republic.
A frequent west elm collaborator, the celebrated Brooklyn-based event designer David Stark is known for repurposing everyday materials and turning them into whimsical and wonderful décor. Take his Zebra Rug, for instance. The playful faux pelt—made completely from jute—reinvents an icon of design with unexpected wit and charm. In the past, David has also created collections of ingenious holiday décor for us, including garlands, flowers and modern trees made from the pages of a vintage garden book printed on recycled paper.
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