Modern Art by Mokum

“Having begun working on abstract print designs with the objective of adding more colour into our range, seeing these exhibitions consolidated our view of this direction. This groundbreaking group of artists and their intense works heralded a sense of the future following the seismic events of World War II, and the similarities of this period resonated strongly with our shared experience of 2020.

“I loved the over-scaled canvas’s, experimental paint techniques, and dynamic layering of colour. Although the exhibitions featured many iconic and influential artists whom I was familiar with, I did discover the work of Sam Gilliam and was mesmerized by his painted textile installations.

“My visit to New York reinforced our desire to design textiles which embrace creativity with positivity and confidence. I came home motivated and resolute about the theme of this range and excited to share what I had seen with the studio team, to enhance what we had already begun.”

-          Stephanie Moffitt, Mokum Design Director

Modern Art is the latest thematic collection from Mokum. Inspired by the movement’s influence on contemporary art, the collection explores abstract patterns via multifaceted prints, woven and embroidered geometrics, and tactile textured plains.

Two expressive prints speak to the origin of the collection’s inspiration. Colour Field heroes the loose gestural brushstrokes and rhythmic mark making of the artist’s hand atop a colour blocked base, whilst Ronde is a diffused hazy print approached through a contemporary lens. Abstracting form to create the sensation of rounded cloudlike shapes of colour soaking into the transparent linen base cloth. Our unconventional collage, Assemblage, completes the soiree of confident patterns. Arranging embroidered abstract shapes and fine fringing into an avantgarde stripe.

A selection of soft geometric and tactile woven upholsteries ground the collection. Coloured in warm and chalky neutrals, the brick and stonelike weave structures provide negative space reminiscent of a gallery in which to exhibit the prints. Modernist, our weighty plain chenille upholstery, is tinted in rich hues with an undeniable tactility and Gouache, a finely woven wide linen drapery, is dyed in an artistic colour palette.

In a modern and unconventional take on the medium of collage, embroidery stitching, playful fringing, and geometric shapes are assembled into a soft rhythmic stripe. The natural ground of Assemblage’s pure linen base cloth contrasts with the fine, lustrous stitching that embellishes it.

Colour Field is an expressive, energic print which explores Abstract Expressionist’s experimental layers of colour and captures some of the influential painting techniques that defined the movement. 

Gestural swaths of paint form multi-layered blocks of colour, assembled into a monumentally scaled repeat. The design is digitally printed onto a yarn dyed oatmeal linen base cloth which grounds the palettes and subdues the colour, presenting a nostalgic, lived-in appearance.

The eye travels across the drapery, catching areas of interest within each of our three palettes. Shellac, our ode to the colour confidence of the period, celebrates the radiance and joy that colour brings; Clay plays with smoky pigmented adobe tones; and Mineral connects to the calming hues and earthen terracotta of our exterior landscape.

Ronde is composed of cloudlike shapes digitally printed onto a wide linen base, creating a translucent drapery where soft shapes dance together. Fading in and out of focus when paired with natural light, these transitions invoke a dreamlike state as pools of colour melt into one another.

Our ethereal and delicate interplay of colour and form is realised in three colourways. Solar showcases radiant sun-soaked hues of citrine and coral set in cloudy tones, allowing the colours to come alive; Celestial brings effervescent shades of blue to the forefront, glowing when blended into contrasting shades of oxide and peach; and Mist reinterprets a neutral palette suggestive of foggy, subdued landscapes with pops of relief via ivory and sand.

Woven using finely twisted linen yarns, the paint-like opaque surface brings depth and energy to our plain wide-width drapery. Further surface tacitly is created via tumbling, delivering a soft and contemporary drapery. Gouache’s palette is comprised of essential neutrals, chalky mid-tones, and deeply nostalgic shades.

Long brushstroke-like shapes stretch from selvedge to selvedge, forming a deconstructed horizontal stripe. Tactile in appearance, agile in application, and reminiscent of a painter’s thickly laid medium, Impastare is a robust three-dimensional upholstery with a colour blocked construction woven from blended fibres and custom multicoloured yarns in natural palettes. 

Named after a print making technique, Intaglio is a directional weave with surface interest created via the interplay of binding techniques and contrasting yarn styles. The polyester chenille yarns sit proud and deliver softness with a subtle sheen, equivalent to the sophistication of viscose but with the practicality of synthetic fibres. 

Tightly woven in a ‘masonry’ brick-like structure, Muratura is a pairing of over-scaled and fine boucle yarns which together create a soft and dimensional small-scale check. Italian for brick work, Muratura is manufactured in Italy in two naturalistic colours: Chalk and Pumice.

Italian for stone, Pietre is a weighty Italian upholstery woven from thick woollen boucle yarns. Adding incredible surface interest and softness to contemporary furniture frames, Peitre is available in three natural colourways: Calico, Chalk, and Pumice.

The extreme tactility of sumptuous boucle and heathered yarns add surface appeal and softness which brings our simple check to life. Woven in Italy, Quadro Boucle is suitable for light duty upholstery and an array of textile accessories. Available in two colourways: Chalk blends golden linen yarns with fresh ivory, whilst Pumice embraces rusted tones, mixing warm calico boucle with aged bronzes.

Roccia utilises mixed fibre boucle yarns, which despite being named for its rock-like surface, are luxuriously soft and inviting. Roccia is a lively Italian upholstery textile woven in two warm and comforting neutral tones: Ash and Merino.

Modernist is a luxurious chenille upholstery, woven in Italy and coloured in a palette nostalgic of mid-century and 1970s design. The weighty construction and high linen-viscose pile suits expansive furniture frames and distinctive chairs, adding surface texture whilst encouraging you to sink into the comforting structure.