Design Daily: Paul Smith Textiles for Fritz Hansen
Author:Sarah Virginia WhiteBritish designer Paul Smith adds to his growing roster of collaborations with Point by Paul Smith, a textile collection that’s pitch perfect on iconic chair designs from The Republic of Fritz Hansen.
Arne Jacobsen designed the iconic Egg and Swan chairs in 1958 for the lounge of Copenhagen’s Royal Hotel.
Inspired by Scottish Fair Isle knitting, Smith recreates the style’s vibrant mix of colors, but gives them a modern pointillist twist—hence the name—with gridded repeats of persimmon, ultramarine, mustard and loden green (olive green, to laypeople).
To bring the patterns to life, Smith partnered with Maharam and Kvadrat New York- and Denmark-based textile companies. The Republic of Fritz Hansen got into the mix to celebrate the upholstery collection launch, wrapping classic designs such as Arne Jacobsen’s Egg and Swan chairs in Smith’s woven cloth.
The fabric is available in seven different patterns and 11 colorways, all of which possess a similar mod tribal feel. I think that’s why it works so well on the clean mid-century lines of the Jacobsen chairs. Point by Paul Smith launched in summer and is available through Design Within Reach stores in San Francisco, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles.
The Egg chair, $9,892, with Point by Paul Smith pillow.
