Wall of fame: Serpentine Galleries and Maharam deliver works of art by the roll

London's Serpentine Galleries and American textile house, Maharam's collaboration
(Image credit: Anthony Cotsifas)

London's Serpentine Galleries and American textile house, Maharam's collaboration: A collection of 13 patterned wallpapers by seven artists and architects. Frames, from left, Circa 1907 American Arts & Crafts painting frame, by Carrig-Rohane Boston Makers; 18th-century French Louis XVI frame; custom-made replica of a 1920s-30s American Modernist frame; 19th-century french shadowbox frame, all from Gill & Lagodich Gallery, New York  Producer: Michael Reynolds

Putting a John Baldessari or a Rosemarie Trockel on your wall just got a whole lot easier, thanks to a collaboration between London's Serpentine Galleries and the American textile house, Maharam. The Serpentine's latest stab at making art accessible to all is an inspiring collection of wallpapers. Made up of 13 patterns, mainly produced specifically for the project, by seven artists and architects, the inaugural collection brings the long tradition of artists creating wallpapers bang up to date.

Under the fine curatorial eye of Julia Peyton-Jones and Hans Ulrich Obrist, co-directors of the Serpentine Galleries, the Maharam Serpentine Galleries wallpaper collection includes previously unseen work from artists such as John Baldessari, Marc Camille Chaimowicz, Rosemarie Trockel, Lawrence Weiner and Ai Weiwei, as well as architects Toyo Ito and SANAA, as featured in our June 2015 issue (W*195).

'Wallpaper is something many artists and architects have been interested in,' explains Obrist, who visited artists such as Beatriz González in Bogota and Etel Adnan in Beirut, during his early research of the idea.

'We found it interesting that this partnership with Maharam could be an exhibition of wallpapers that might be seen in houses all over the world and would actually lead to a dissemination.' 'It is possible for all of us to commission architects, designers and indeed artists, to do something specifically for us,' Peyton-Jones says. 'However, having wallpaper that you can buy by the roll, to cover a wall, a room, or a [whole] house or apartment, means that you can be your own curator in your own home.'

The collection's vibrant patterns range from the abstract to the photorealistic, and are all realised using the fine-art grade, digital printing techniques that Maharam has finessed since launching its Maharam Digital Projects arm in 2009. Each artist's design is printed with UV-resistant inks onto a latex- reinforced substrate. The end results possess all the durability of traditional wallpaper.

Apart from John Baldessari's four designs, which originally appeared in a 1998 exhibition in Zurich, each pattern is freshly minted. From Marc Camille Chaimowicz's illustrative 'Pavilion' design, which depicts the Serpentine building in its Kensington surroundings, to Ai Weiwei's self-referential 'Golden Age' and Rosemarie Trockel's restrained shapes, the works are not just familiar favourites on a roll.

'The patterns were created in dialogue with the artists, and on the basis of past work that had been underexposed,' comments Michael Maharam, the wallpaper company's CEO, who helped set the course of the Serpentine Galleries' venture. While the choice to include designs from SANAA and Toyo Ito might seem an unusual turn, the architects' involvement highlights the increasing cross-pollination between art, design and architecture, which the Serpentine Galleries has long pioneered.

Everyone involved in the collection was given creative carte blanche. Maharam provided only technical guidance to ensure a distinguishable pattern was created. Dung Ngo, the brand's editorial director, explains, 'Because artists' works are generally unique as a composition, they can struggle with the idea of a repeatable pattern. The best way [of working] has often been for us to create a repeat with the art they give us, so they can see what it looks like on a wall. Once they see it, it is much easier to make adjustments.'

Briefly showcased at a Libby Sellers - curated show at La Rinascente, during April's Salone del Mobile in Milan, the collection will debut officially at Frieze New York this month.'We see it as an evolving exhibition,' says Obrist, 'like the Serpentine Pavilions, which have been going for 15 years. We hope there will be 200 years of wallpaper.'

As featured in the June 2015 (W*195) issue of Wallpaper*

Yellow/Green’ wallpaper by John Baldessari

‘Nose/Popcorn – Yellow/Green’ wallpaper by John Baldessari with 17th-century Italian pierced lobate leaf and volute motif frame, from Gill & Lagodich Gallery. Producer: Michael Reynolds

(Image credit: Anthony Cotsifas)

‘Circle Cutter’s Room’ wallpaper by Rosemarie Trockel

‘Circle Cutter’s Room’ wallpaper by Rosemarie Trockel with 18th-century Italian oval moulding frame; Circa 1740 French Louis XV frame with round opening; 19th-century American Scotia profile frame with applied balls, all from Gill & Lagodich Gallery. Producer: Michael Reynolds

(Image credit: Anthony Cotsifas)

'Ear/Pretzel - Pink' by John Baldessari

'Ear/Pretzel - Pink' by John Baldessari. Inspired by a series of abstract prints which originally appeared in a 1998 exhibition in Zurich. The set of prints matches shapes of unrelated subjects together to create a repetitive pattern.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Nose/Popcorn - Yellow/Green' by John Baldessari

'Nose/Popcorn - Yellow/Green' by John Baldessari. The American-born artist uses vibrant colours, adding to the playful quirkiness of his designs.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Clock/Pizza - Turquoise' by John Baldessari

'Clock/Pizza - Turquoise' by John Baldessari.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Potato/Lightbulb - Blue' by John Baldessari. Courtesy of Maharam and Serpentine Galleries

'Potato/Lightbulb - Blue' by John Baldessari.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Finger' by Ai Weiwei

'Finger' by Ai Weiwei. The Chinese artist's pattern shows twisted interlocking images of his own arm with the contentious gesture hidden in the spiral entanglement.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Golden Age' by Ai Weiwei

'Golden Age' by Ai Weiwei. A political statement, Weiwei keeps in with the theme of entanglement using surveillance cameras and handcuffs to allude to the government.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Ume' by Toyo Ito

'Ume' by Toyo Ito. The architect was inspired by a web of branches from a Japanese plum tree.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Stamp Flowers' by SANAA

'Stamp Flowers' by SANAA. The delicate nature of SANAA's second pattern is reminiscent of their simplistic architectural style.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Circle Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel

'Circle Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel. The contemporary artist uses geometric prints to communicate graphic qualities of symmetry and size.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

Black and white version of 'Circle Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel

Black and white version of 'Circle Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Square Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel

'Square Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel. The simple grid pattern has bigger impact when enlarged to wallpaper.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Square Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel in olive and black.

'Square Cutter's Room' by Rosemarie Trockel in olive and black.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Sail On' by Lawrence Weiner

'Sail On' by Lawrence Weiner. Created with children in mind, the American artist employs bold primary colours to clever effect. Influenced by his typographical background, he uses the hexagons after the ship as ellipses for continuation.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Pavilion' by Marc Camille Chaimowicz

'Pavilion' by Marc Camille Chaimowicz. The illustrative designs from the Parisian artist displaying the Serpentine building in its Kensington surroundings are available in different pastel hues.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

'Watercolor Flowers' by SANAA.

'Watercolor Flowers' by SANAA.  Japanese florals create the architecture duo's hand-painted pattern.

(Image credit: Maharam and Serpentine Galleries)

Pei-Ru Keh is a former US Editor at Wallpaper*. Born and raised in Singapore, she has been a New Yorker since 2013. Pei-Ru held various titles at Wallpaper* between 2007 and 2023. She reports on design, tech, art, architecture, fashion, beauty and lifestyle happenings in the United States, both in print and digitally. Pei-Ru took a key role in championing diversity and representation within Wallpaper's content pillars, actively seeking out stories that reflect a wide range of perspectives. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two children, and is currently learning how to drive.