Interior Design | Molly Acacia Designs

base design sketch for repeatable screen print

developed for milliken flooring

During my second year at Loughborough University we worked to a live brief - design a series of carpet tiles and other interior textile element to create a scheme for redecorating a retail space.

My theme was 'Reconstructed Legacy' and to me this conjured images of regal architecture, ornate plaster work and wrought iron structures. I took the term 'reconstructed' to mean altered or changed, in a world where we are increasingly separated from nature, my reconstructed element was to create an interior space reclaimed by nature.

Taking inspiration from crumbling baroque interiors, faded tin ceiling tiles and acanthus leaf motifs.

I looked at concept stores from brands such as PRADA & Acne Studios, focusing on minimalist boutique luxury spaces.

reconstructed legacy materials - moodbooard

Colour- scheme
plucked from earth & sky

Ceramic tiles

I made a series of square ceramic tiles, pressing in laser cut stencils to create a 3D relief impression on the surface. Photographing these tiles allowed me to pick areas of shadow and shape to take forward into creating my carpet tile artworks.

I hybridised ceramic tiles with carpet tiles using photography to instruct the designs, creating faded 'worn out' looks with delicate detailing. The photographs of my tiles, with shadowing and 3D reliefs, became vinyl faux tile outcomes, meaning I could alter emphasise certain colours using photoshop.

Transferable ceramic glazes

Combining painterly marks with the 3D relief of the tiles allowed for another dimension of design, these examples show the plain glazed tiles (below) where simple forms and shadows are the prominent feature, in contrast with digitally glazed tiles, where elements of the artwork are burnt away during the firing process, leaving these distressed, multicoloured results (left).