Pattern makes architects worry, says Jon Sherman, namely that it will detract from the space they’ve sculpted. “But,” notes this head of Flavor Paper, “designing a space to enhance user experience with strong pattern and large graphics makes everyone happier.” Since 2003, Sherman has been helping architects see wallpaper and murals as friend, not foe. And Flavor Paper has become a goto source for designers who want to transform walls from innocuous to intoxicating. Sherman talked with Architizer about the creative evolution that has paralleled business growth.
Name: Jon Sherman
Age: 44
Title: Founder and Creative Director of Flavor Paper
Location: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Jon Sherman. All photos courtesy Flavor Paper.
Why did you move operations from New Orleans to Brooklyn? What role did Hurricane Katrina play in that decision versus other factors?
In 2005, over 90 percent of our sales were coming through New York firms, so we had already begun to investigate options in New York City. When we returned to New Orleans post-Katrina, we had no phone or Internet service and our power was cutting out quite often, causing major production issues. We lost a good chunk of our staff, as well. Those hurdles, the need to properly showcase our wallpaper, and our paper suppliers being in New York or New Jersey really led us here.
The move also prompted the launch of your digital mural service.
We had been outsourcing digital production to New York City from New Orleans when custom projects required it: our building in the Bywater District would shift when it rained, so a level working surface was hard to come by. Today, we do everything from corporate branding work to artist productions digitally. It has really allowed us to explore creative territories that hand screening does not allow, due to either cost or detail.
Would you give readers an update about the New Orleans facility?
The New Orleans facility is now housing a local screen-printing operation called Purple Monkey. They produce our shirts and tote bags and print our pillows.
© Boone Speed Photography
Iris Restaurant, New Orleans
Flavor Paper started when you went to Oregon to save a set of wallpaper designs and equipment from demolition. Is that origin story still felt at Flavor Paper?
We have part of Ted’s original table here in Brooklyn, and the remainder is in New Orleans. Design-wise, Ted had a great eye for classics, and his strong geometrics and Art Nouveau patterns do still sell often.
When you create new designs, do you feel a certain obligation to honor precedent?
I feel we have moved on from the originals. We are always looking to expand our aesthetic offerings, in order to offer clients a broad scope of patterns. Our colors are still easily customized, so that allows them to take a pattern and make it tie into their interior perfectly, regardless of style.
“City Park” and “Elysian Fields” by Dan Funderbergh for Flavor Paper
How would you describe your own design vocabulary? “Exuberantly twisted historicism” is a phrase that comes mind.
I like that! One of our goals was to take tradition and flip it in a humorous and engaging way. Discovering Dan Funderburgh’s work sealed the deal. His was the exact wavelength I was looking for — William Morris with a hidden agenda, which makes you laugh out loud when you discover the twist.
Which of your own designs sells best?
Of my designs, Fishnet sells very well, and Brooklyn Bridge Wall has been a top seller on the mural side. And I’m particularly happy with my Warhol redesigns: Rorschach, Crowd (Where’s Warhol?), and Globetrotter, which is about to be released as a Bugaboo stroller.
Globetrotter
Is the wallpaper market a little more fashion-like, with certain aesthetics falling in and out of favor, than other design disciplines?
There are funny shifts in what tends to be popular, but it is very difficult to narrow down why certain patterns have their ups and downs. You do see major movements, such as toiles’ big runs. Still, I feel colors follow fashion more than pattern does, and they usually lag a year or two in wallpaper.
How do you stay fresh, creatively?
Traveling, going to museums and galleries, and venturing outside day-to-day routines to find new sources of inspiration (harder now that I have a baby!).
Fishnet
Are there certain cultural trends — the rise of micro-dwellings, for instance, or the mainstream acceptance of street art — that you’re keeping an eye on?
I love street art and am always looking to incorporate those design principles and aesthetics into our work — without stepping on toes. Micro-dwellings typically don’t leave much wall space for decoration, but that’s why we always tell people not to ignore the fifth wall, the ceiling. Generally we produce work that feels timely to us, regardless of trends.
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