Erica Wakerly wallpaper designs – new collection of hothouse designs bring the organic into interiors…

Above : Hothouse wallpaper in two colourways

The graphic quality of the range of Erica Wakerly wallpaper prints have been on our wish list for some time now. Her signature wallpaper prints consist of delicately composed linear elements of either organic or geometric subject matter, which add either an illustrative or clean-lined contemporary edge to interiors.

The Erica Wakerly range

Above : Fan wallpaper, Angles wallpaper

With ranges of wallpaper and fabrics, and commissioned interior installations to boot, Erica’s work feels like a breathe of fresh air against a backdrop of so-so, re-hashed classical textile designs which are currently on the commercial market. Without a whimsical floral in site, Erica Wakerly wallpaper is clean, minimal, and conversely often hand-drawn, adding a personal design aesthetic to the previously mundane world of some interior wallpapers!

Above : Spiral wallpaper

Hailing from a graphic design background, Erica Wakerly studied at the Royal College of Art, honing her illustrative style through the medium of screen printing to bring life to her work, which would otherwise be confined to a very much smaller scale.

Exploiting the potential of almost ‘drawing all over a wall’, Erica’s hand drawn design style lends itself to intriguing pattern formations of foliage in her new Erica Wakerly wallpaper ‘Hothouse’ collection, and more domesticated product matter as in her ‘Homes’ wallpaper, where everyday household objects merge together in a style reminiscent of fifties Americana.

Above :Construct wallpaper, Houses wallpaper

In her wallpaper ‘Construct’, a scene much like the product design workshop at the Royal College springs to mind, with measuring tools and angled rulers float in space. The wallpaper ‘Houses’ explores the many facades of a British town’s architecture, in a design which you could stare at for hours…

Above : Teepee fabric, and Tiles wallpaper

Many of Wakerly’s geometric prints are also reminiscent of a bygone era – both ‘Teepee’ and ‘Tiles’ are reminiscent of upholstery weaves far too good for use on the London Underground, whilst her signature ‘Spiral’ and ‘Block’ wallpaper designs owe more to the current linear illustrative style and are optically mesmerizing in a room setting.

Above : Tapet Cafe Tile fabric, and Patch fabric design

Recent forays into fabric design echo her angles designs, ‘Patch’ having an almost doodle like quality yet just geometric enough to blend into the background. ‘Tapet Café Tile’ shows the designer at what she does best – engrossing pattern which you can’t quite work out where it begins and ends – a good test of a decent repeat pattern!

Above : Guy's Hospital Project commission

Erica’s work has also spanned to site-specific commission work, including a project for Guy’s Hospital, which saw Wakerly design artwork for a calming environment for the Urology Unit. At 40m long, the artwork swoops in and out of the line of vision, with bright star-bursts accenting the organic design work.

We’re looking forward to hopefully interviewing Erica for our ‘Designer of the Month’ feature early next year, so watch this space for more on this exciting young London designer…