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Inlay is the most recent addition to a series of textiles designed by Hella Jongerius in collaboration with Maharam. With its densely layered and highly detailed grids, Inlay reflects a level of intricacy and potential for visual discovery first seen in Repeat, designed by Jongerius in 2002.
Influenced by traditional Dutch woven ribbons, the design was initiated by layering vertical and horizontal pieces of tinted tape to capture the effect of overlapping patterns. In time, Inlay evolved into a unique design of intricate checkers and stripes rendered in a finely woven quality with a handcrafted feel.
Bold and graphic in appearance, Inlay is constructed using an end-on-end nylon warp, creating a variety of micro-woven patterns and structures. Close inspection reveals a subtle plaid in the ground, upon which bands of unusual color appear overlaid. These gridded arrangements, highlighted by colored embellishments, seamlessly transition from one to the next. It is within these banded structures that detail and color reside, encouraging deep exploration within the design.
A highly picked construction allows for complexity and density in the palette. Unexpected color pairings like ribbons of bright pink and olive green sit atop a ground of navy blue, while checks of sky blue and burnt orange are layered over a taupe base. As she’s consistently done throughout her career, with Inlay, Jongerius elevates a simple idea to a masterful demonstration of material and color.
About Hella Jongerius
A graduate of Design Academy Eindhoven, Hella Jongerius has been a standout in the world of product design since her early work for Droog, the Dutch design collective. She founded Jongeriuslab in Rotterdam in 1993 and moved to Berlin in 2008. Jongerius’s unique approach to craft from the perspective of industry, and her ability to combine these seemingly oppositional methods of production, has allowed her to create individuality on a mass scale. Her work ranges from one-offs and limited editions exhibited at galleries to consumer products available through companies like Vitra, Nymphenburg, Royal Tichelaar Makkum, and IKEA. In 2012, she became the Art Director for Colors and Surfaces for the Vitra Collection and in 2013, she was appointed Design Director of Danskina, a Dutch rug company co-owned by Kvadrat and Maharam.
Hella Jongerius and Maharam have been collaborating since 2001. Several of the resultant textiles are now in the permanent collections of museums worldwide, including the Art Institute of Chicago; the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; the Museum of Modern Art; the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen; and the Stedelijk Museum, among others.
Inlay by Hella Jongerius
Width: 52"/132cm
Colors: 6
Content: 80% Cotton, 20% Nylon