Debbie Smyth is textile artist most identifiable by her statement thread drawings; these playful yet sophisticated contemporary artworks are created by stretching a network of threads between accurately plotted pins. Her work beautifully blurs the boundaries between fine art drawings and textile art, flat and 3D work, illustration and embroidery, literally lifting the drawn line off the page in a series of “pin and thread” drawings. Debbie plays with scale well; creating both gallery installations and works for domestic interiors. Her unique style lends itself to suit corporate environments, public spaces, window display, set design, graphic design and illustration. By collaborating with interior designers, architects and other creative practitioners, Debbie pushes the expected scope of her work even further. Debbie has worked with companies both nationally and internationally including Ellesse, The New York Times, The Canadian Red Cross, Sony, and The Dorchester Hotel Group
Mike Perry
Mike Perry is a Brooklyn based designer and artist working in a variety of mediums, including—but not limited to—books, magazines, newspapers, clothing, drawing, painting, and illustration. Compelled by the ways in which the hand-drawn informs and deepens contemporary visual culture, Perry doodles night and day, creating new typefaces and sundry graphics that inevitably evolve into his new work, believing that the generating of piles is the sincerest form of creative process. By ceaselessly mixing colors, pulling prints and building sculptures, he exercises his belief in the transformative power of making things. And the fruits of his labors do not go unnoticed as his work pops up just about everywhere.
Perry works regularly for a number of editorial and commercial clients including Apple, The New York Times, Dwell, Target, Urban Outfitters, eMusic, and Nike. In 2004, he was chosen as one of Step magazine’s 30 under 30, and, in 2007, as a “Groundbreaking Illustrator” by Computer Arts Projects. In 2008, he received Print magazine’s New Visual Artist award and the ADC Young Guns 6. His work has been exhibited around the world in numerous gallery shows. In addition to his commercial, non-profit, and art work, Perry has also published extensively with 4 books and a magazine under his belt with plans for more.
Famille Summerbelle
The work of Famille Summerbelle first caught our eye with their whimsical and meticulously detailed paper cut city maps, landing them in the top of our pattern designers list. Created by Anglo/French duo Simon Summerscales and Julie Marabelle, the inspiration for Famille Summerbelle came from the combination of family life experiences and a love of design and interior decoration. Together, they sought create the things that they wanted for their own home. La Famille Summerbelle’s design aesthetic is grounded in creating a mix between France and the UK. Famille Summerbelle may be a growing global brand, but they are still clearly very much a family business, reflected in their family friendly designs and sustainably focused mindset.
All products are imagined and designed by Julie, whose background is a mix of Fine Art (which she studied in Paris), and Theatre Set Design (which she studied at St Martin’s in London). This provides a balance of both artisanal skill and an understanding of dramatic backdrop in her work. Simon is managing director, and comes from a background in advertising where he worked for the world’s largest independent advertising agency, Wieden + Kennedy. He has worked internationally with brands such as Nike, Honda, Nokia and the Guardian Media Group.
Nienke Sybrandy
We first noticed Dutch artist Nienke Sybrandy when we spotted her beautiful sheer curtains of trees composed in code that are now used at the James New York hotel. Her work is consistently interesting, innovative and playful and traverses mediums to explore her ideas.
“My work comes from observations of everyday life: small events in the house, the streets, actions and traditions: I walk around it and hold it upside down. My favorite material, and muse, are objects that are so obvious that they have to be overlooked. I lift them out of the shadows and put them in the light, so that their hidden meaning is visible. Each object is a carrier of stories and symbols. The smallest thing has a great theme. A nail is a sign of hope and desire and photocopied a bunch of flowers is about the same mortality as seventeenth-century painting. By using everyday objects can be small to the large unite and make a connection between today and earlier. This process of observing, analyzing and reinterpreting taking shape in images and objects by their “personal” story by no means obvious.”
Ana Montiel
Ana Montiel is quite the talent and a verifiable Pattern Pulp favorite. Her love of art and pattern has been a part of her world since her childhood, where she drew patterns and textures on any and every surface. After attending an art-based high school and college, Montiel settled into work as an art director.
In 2008, she created the pop-up design studio Alan The Gallant and Pattern Tales, a neo-ornamental brand of goods. Her patterns swept the web, catching eyes and impressing many. Since then, she’s been focusing on a solo career as “some sort of artist/designer hybrid,” and creating her own stunning pattern work in addition to some exciting commercial collaborations. It’s her keen eye for the colors, textures and patterns inherent in nature and life that make her style so abundantly unique, engaging and elegant. Browsing through her colorful portfolio is nothing short of inspiring and we loved getting to know her a little better in this charming video autobiography.
Alison Foshee
Alison Foshee sees the beauty in everyday objects. With meticulous attention to detail, she directs thumbtacks and pushpins to explode into extravagant floral arrangements, staples to trace the jagged contour of a leaf and office labels to spin out in hot, firecracker explosions. Over the past 15 years, she’s created her own distinct style in revealing something about each material’s original function in the shape and content of her creations.
To Alison, the entire process of creation is both art and adventure: “In search of my muse, I enjoy scouring our urban city centers, like an orchid thief in the Amazon, for weird and marvelous products like the next generation of folder dividers or the latest technology in bendable pencils. I find these readymade oddities ever fascinating because of their dual nature as consumable goods. They are simultaneously indispensable and without value; perhaps, a not-so-subtle metaphor for culture’s subjective/plastic definition of what is precious.”