Pullman Hotels & Wallpaper* ’Our World = Your Playground’
Having made a careful examination of the contemporary work/play philosophy and the ever-evolving pleasure of doing business, Wallpaper* and upscale international hotel brand Pullman Hotels announce the ‘Our World = Your Playground’ project. The new artist-in-residence programme invites young talent – photographers, illustrators, graphic designers and digital artists – to submit themselves and their work for consideration, with the chance of a prize that offers unique access to a diverse creative environment and a truly global audience
Launched earlier this year, Wallpaper* and Pullman Hotels’ Our World = Your Playground artist-in-residence programme is intended as an opportunity for creative people to take time away from their usual environment and obligations, in order to inspire new possibilities in the production and presentation of their work.
In August 2015, competition winner Louisa Gagliardi, a Zurich-based illustrator, ensconced herself for a week in a penthouse suite at the Pullman London St Pancras. Working from all areas of the building, and observing every detail, large and small, she generated a collection of artworks inspired by the Pullman Hotel’s ambiance, furnishings, textures and surroundings.
‘As soon as arrived, I started collecting images of the hotel’s spaces and whatever objects I could find in the various rooms, including the tiny sewing kits, soaps, slippers, bathrobes, keys or room service trays,’ says Louisa. ‘I decided to produce images of these hotel objects, blowing them up on large-scale prints.’
Some items were digitally juxtaposed in unusual settings – a lobster on a dining table, a giant gemstone in a boardroom – creating impactful and imaginative pop art that brings to mind the work of Michael English, Gerald Murphy and Tom Wesselmann.
Gagliardi found the experience of an intense seven days in an enclosed but comfortable foreign environment ‘extremely productive’. ‘The short period of time forces you to only focus on the work,’ she says. ‘Which in my case meant living and breathing the project, actually occupying the space I was depicting.’
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Melina Keays is the entertaining director of Wallpaper*. She has been part of the brand since the magazine’s launch in 1996, and is responsible for entertaining content across the print and digital platforms, and for Wallpaper’s creative agency Bespoke. A native Londoner, Melina takes inspiration from the whole spectrum of art and design – including film, literature, and fashion. Her work for the brand involves curating content, writing, and creative direction – conceiving luxury interior landscapes with a focus on food, drinks, and entertaining in all its forms
-
Alcova 2024 offers up contemporary independent design in historical domestic backdrops
Alcova 2024 moved to Varedo to take over the spaces of Villa Bagatti Valsecchi and Villa Borsani (on view until 21 April)
By Sujata Burman Published
-
Ama Bar, in Vancouver, is sexy and a little disorienting
Ama Bar features ‘Blade Runner 2049’-inspired interiors by &Daughters
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
Kembra Pfahler revisits ‘The Manual of Action’ for CIRCA
Artist Kembra Pfahler will lead a series of classes in person and online, with a short film streamed from Piccadilly Circus in London, as well as in Berlin, Milan and Seoul, over three months until 30 June 2024
By Zoe Whitfield Published