(February 2013—New York, NY) — Trove, the award-winning New York based design firm that creates distinctive, mixed-media wallpapers, is pleased to announce that the Brooklyn Museum has chosen six patterns for the museum’s permanent Decorative Arts Collection. The Brooklyn Museum, known for excellence in presenting dynamic and innovative visual art, selected Trove for its unique textile design and its New York location. Founded in Manhattan, Trove’s collection is designed and produced in New York City.
Since launching the company in 2006, Trove co-founders and design principals, Randall Buck and Jee Levin have applied their singular artistic approach to designing within the unexpected category of wall covering. Interpreting the wall as an open canvas, Trove has elevated the category of wallpaper with its signature large-scale mixed-media patterns. Trove’s designs are derived from their original paintings, drawings, and photographs to create the conceptually driven collections. This is the second time Trove’s designs have been acquired for a permanent collection by a museum; the Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum acquired the Ara and Indi designs in 2009. This latest acquisition by the Brooklyn Museum reiterates Trove’s standing in the history of wallpaper.
The designs selected for the Brooklyn Museum’s permanent collection reflect Trove’s diverse body of work:
August (2012). Introduced as part of the science-inspired collection of 2012, August reinterprets past queens from Denmark, Japan, Romania, Greece, Prussia, Italy, and India to portray their present day anonymity. August is a statement on our collective memory. The pattern August is created exclusively from photography, following in the footsteps of Trove’s iconic Fuoco pattern.
Fuoco (2010). . Based on an historic photograph of the famed Venice opera house, Teatro La Fenice, Fuoco plays with the concept of the beholder versus the beholden. The original photograph was taken after the theatre was rebuilt following a fire that completely destroyed it in 1836. The rebuilt theatre, from which the pattern is constructed, no longer exists as it once again burnt to the ground in 1996. Literally translated, “La Fenice” means “the Phoenix” or “rise from the ashes.
Auva (2009). Auva is created from a series of paintings by both Buck and Levin. It is one of the first patterns in their collection to establish a horizon line on the wall. The historic language of wall covering has been the repetitive print of a motif or design to create pattern. With Auva, Trove established their unique definition of repetitive pattern.
Indi (2008). A graphic tribute to film luminary Alfred Hitchcock, Indi feels like an action shot of a flock of birds in motion and conjures up visions of the great filmmakers’ masterpiece, The Birds. The intertwining pattern is formed by groups of blackbirds in full flight, Indi is an authentic representation of the spontaneous splendor of the natural world.
Alcyone (2008). Alcyone was part of the motion collection, released in 2008. Among the collection was Indi and Azha: both illustrated the natural world released. With Alcyone, Buck and Levin wanted to capture the quieter moments of the natural world. Alcyone is composed of water lilies, flowing downstream, or across the wall. This pattern also established depth as one of the staple design elements of Trove. The many layers and refractions of color in the water lilies portrays a sense of depth that transforms wallpaper beyond a two dimensional format.
Alula (2006). Alula was created as part of Trove’s debut collection, which was inspired from New York City’s 100-year-old flower market in the middle of Manhattan.
About Trove
Founded in 2006 in New York City, Trove is led by Jee Levin and Randall Buck, who are both accomplished artists and the creative force behind the brand. Randall Buck, a multi-media artist who works in time-based media, envisions patterns from an architectural perspective. He believes that engaging technology helps to push his designs beyond conventional manufacturing limits creating tactile, distinct, and inspired designs.
Jee Levin, who applies her technique and philosophy of painting to wall covering design, seeks to create patterns that break from tradition by reimagining the current language of wallpaper. She works outside the limits of geometry and line by employing depth and perspective to create more organic and free-form imagery.
By incorporating their unique visions, Levin and Buck have successfully merged art, design, and craft by mixing traditional decorative elements with nontraditional application and eco-friendly materials. Trove’s work is a clever interpretation of the simple, yet fascinating beauty of our environment.
Trove has won several awards, including three Good Design awards, two Editor's Choice Awards for ICFF, and an Architectural Products Product Innovation award. Two Trove Patterns have been acquired for the permanent collection at the Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt, National Design Museum and three Trove patterns were featured in the 2010 Triennial exhibit. www.troveline.com