Arcade
NYCxDesign (Spring 2019)
Calico Wallpaper & Workstead
Timeline
February - May 2019
Location
Formerly Arcade Bakery, now Frenchette Bakery
Tribeca, NYC
Role
Exhibition designer & wallpaper designer
Partners & Collaborators
Kaijie Chen︎︎︎, wallpaper designer
Rachel Cope, decoupage artist
Joe Cassidy, lead wallpaper installer
Calico Wallpaper & Workstead
Timeline
February - May 2019
Location
Formerly Arcade Bakery, now Frenchette Bakery
Tribeca, NYC
Role
Exhibition designer & wallpaper designer
Partners & Collaborators
Kaijie Chen︎︎︎, wallpaper designer
Rachel Cope, decoupage artist
Joe Cassidy, lead wallpaper installer
Project OverviewFor NYCxDesign week 2019, Workstead and Calico Wallpaper decided to debut both of their new collections in a joint exhibition at Arcade Bakery (now Frenchette Bakery). Located on the ground floor of the historic Merchant Square Building in Tribeca, the space acts both as a hallway into the larger office building as well as a cafe during work week office hours. The unique coves offer seating and folding leaflets that act as tables during eating hours. We wanted to play with these unique spaces, showcasing our work in the very areas customers rest. The beautiful new lighting by Workstead played with the metallic undertones of the wallpaper, adding warmth to the space.
Award
Winner, NYCxDesign Awards - Artisinal Wallcovering 2019︎︎︎
Select Press
AD︎︎︎ Curbed︎︎︎ dezeen︎︎︎ Galerie︎︎︎ NYT︎︎︎
All installation photos by Matthew Johnson
All process photos by Emily Kim
Award
Winner, NYCxDesign Awards - Artisinal Wallcovering 2019︎︎︎
Select Press
AD︎︎︎ Curbed︎︎︎ dezeen︎︎︎ Galerie︎︎︎ NYT︎︎︎
All installation photos by Matthew Johnson
All process photos by Emily Kim
Wallpaper sampling (left) & original artwork (right), photo credit Matthew Johnson
Creating the Relic Collection
Intrigued by the textures and layering of découpage, the Relic Collection began as one giant decoupage mural. Using scale, opacity, and added textures, the non-repeating wall mural was created. The collection features both metallic and matte materials, introducing an ornamental, luminous surface. The two colorways chosen for the installation were Stela and Tabla, both of which were metallic.
Understanding the Site
Originally designed in 2014 by Workstead, Arcade Bakery is set in the opening hallway into a commercial building, flanked by alcoves with fold-down tables. When open pre-pandemic, the space was continually filled with people eating, reading, working, and generally gathering around and inside these coves. Central to the experience of the space, I wanted to focus on these gathering nooks in my design.
Designing the Space
In order to begin imagining what we could install in the space, I had to visit the site well before they opened to do a site survey; as any regular of the bakery could tell you they are almost always occupied. The alcoves seemed to be the perfect space for people to get up close to the wallpaper and actually “live” with it. They also worked perfectly as frames, each showcasing a different part of the larger wall mural (which measures approx. 71 ft wide x 16 ft tall).
ELEVATION RENDERINGS
North Elevation
South Elevation
Final Installation
In order to install the wallpaper temporarily without damaging the beautiful wood interiors of each cove, we created false backs which the wallpaper was then installed on and fitted to. We loved the warmth of the wood and how it played with the lighting and metallic nature of the two colorways we were showcasing, playing with different elements of fill.
© 2022 Emily Kim