Linda Florence

The wallpaper and floor designs of Linda Florence always draw me back for another look. A wide variety of traditional and more modern techniques give a real richness to her work, her use of matt colours combined with bronzes and silvers creates real depth to her layers. She's clearly not afraid to experiment! My only concern with her wallpapers for Ted Baker is that I'd be more interested in the walls than the clothes! I especially like the bold teal floral design over a geometric triangular design, really striking. Another piece that caught my eye was a beautiful decoupage screen for the Swarovski Unbridled exhibition in Paris. I confess I would never have considered flooring to be that interesting but now see it with completely different eyes and am intrigued by Linda's installation floor designs. The designs are dramatic and vibrant such as the 'Meta Table Setting' installation at the Millenium gallery in Sheffield or the unusual 'Articulate Landscape' design in the grass at York Saint John's University. I am now open to the unlimited possibilities after seeing the hand printed slate flooring for the Scin studio showroom and the 'sugar' floors... It seems a travesty that the sugar flooring designs will be ruined as they are so temporary, yet at the same time, this adds an ethereal effect (making them more a piece of artwork if anything). I particularly love the image of two dancers at the 'Out of the Ordinary: Spectacular Craft' at the V&A (October 2008), this could be perfect for the first dance at a wedding?? Just spotted this video on the website... I also like its use for the design set around a chair and table for the flooring book 'Grounded', simultaneously invoking both a rustic and contemporary feel. Am lucky enough to have been invited to visit her studio so looking forward to that :) http://www.lindaflorence.co.uk/main.html