We asked Royce Epstein, our Director of the Design Segment, for her current list of top art and design books. Whether you love to read, your coffee table needs some visual interest, or you are looking to gift some inspiration, the perfect book is out there! Know of a book that highlights design and a designer or architect might love? Leave it in the comments...
Each year, Interior Design magazine recognizes the best in contract interiors for products and projects through its Best of Year Awards. We are honored to be recognized alongside our industry peers, and, there is no better way to celebrate these awards than in New York City. This year, the Best of Year Awards included 2,016 entries from 38 different countries in 130 product and project...
You may or may not have heard about our Light Lab Design Center — the building that is now home to our commercial and hospitality product design teams within the Mohawk organization. Located in Dalton, GA, the 33,000 square foot Light Lab is a mid-century modern building that features 360 degree views of landscape and natural vistas. And—it is a beacon of sustainability. We hope you have...
The past, present, and future present have converged in this post post-modern era. Historical references have lost their meaning and we have removed all sense of timelines and context. A new society has evolved, one that is cross cultural, nomadic, and more accepting and tolerant of differences in race, age, and gender. We are moving towards a more universal, unbiased world where borders no...
We are facing times of dynamic change that influence the way we live our lives. Therefore we seek grounding and connection. The balance between rational and emotional design results in an increase of the user’s consciousness, perception, and consumption. Relevant design provides sensory experiences that connect essence and process in one holistic context. Not only do spaces and objects hold meaning, their significance transcends...
In this era of nonstop mass production, we are simultaneously seeing the prominence of technology and a return to craft and the handmade. These approaches to making products have converged, and we are rethinking how things are made. We are questioning and seeking authenticity in the process. We are finding ways of humanizing technology. New forms are being created with the rise of 3D printing and manipulation...
In my latest installment for Mohawk’s blog, I thought I would tackle two trends: first, a resurgence of historical styles with a Mod twist, and second, a rekindling of texture that borders on creating a mélange that any Gestalt fanatic would love to analyze. Like a pendulum, the design world and history like to swing from one extreme to the next, picking up bits and...
Royce Epstein, Mohawk Group’s Director of Design Segment, continues to share her story and journey with our community. In August of 2014, at the age of 45, Royce was diagnosed with breast cancer after a routine mammogram. In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month, she gives a behind-the-scenes look into her everyday fight. Her insight and outlook are an inspiration. This is part 2 of...
TRACES. Inspired by infinite and intricate formations, Traces explores the deconstruction and transformation of the earth’s innate variations. Showcasing beautiful biomorphic and organic abstractions, each design explores the intersections of light and shadow through fractal patterning and delicate layers. Taking cues from sedimentary rock forms and arid lands, the palette consists of soft sumptuous shades of beige complemented with decadent browns and cool greys. With harmonious...
It’s the end of the summer, time to go back to school, and refocus our energies on new plans and projects. With the close of one season, we begin another – hence the circle of life. Circles have been a motif in architecture, design and art throughout civilization. Euclid recognized the circle as an essential element in geometry. In the modern era, design thinkers...
This article was originally written by Royce Epstein for Trend Union’s “Talking Textiles” Magalog for New York Textile Month, which begins September 1st. Trend Union’s magalog is filled with essays and articles about textiles in fashion, interiors, design, and art, and was conceived by Li Edelkoort. The magalog includes an introduction by Li Edelkoort and a foreword by Caroline Baumann, director of the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design...
In this edition of Segment Studio… Why do we love this FedEx corporate headquarters project? It’s simple. Sophisticated textures and a bright color palette against a crisp neutral backdrop create a fresh corporate headquarters for FedEx in Plano, Texas. Designed by HOK, the team used Amused Tile and Entralled Tile from our State of Mind Collection in combination with Reawakened Tile from our...
Simple observations and a bit of curiosity–that is how I have been working as a designer for the past 12 years. OK, it might be more than just a bit of curiosity as I seem to have a never-ending list of questions in my head as to why things are done or how they are put together. In my design history, I have worked...
New Commercial LVT Flooring Styles Unveiled At NeoCon we previewed new styles in both our carpet and our commercial LVT flooring solutions. With hard surface in popular demand for today’s environments, we introduced a number of coordinating LVT flooring and carpet collections. Grown Up, part of our award-winning Hot & Heavy collection, is a sophisticated loose-lay luxury vinyl tile. European hardwood visuals receive emboss in register to match...
Recently, I read an article from Lisa P. Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives, on the company’s sustainability portfolio. Apple has partnered with the Conservation Fund and purchased over 36,000 acres of forests in the Eastern U.S.—more than 32,000 of which is in Maine. It makes you think why is Apple, a technology company already doing great sales worldwide, buying...
Here’s why Durkan’s Lakir blew away the decision-makers at Sailfish: It combined organic beauty and sophisticated styling in a durable package that could be custom colored. Plus, it was made in the USA, which facilitated delivery, and it was a sustainable choice—being CRI Green Label Plus certified and crafted of 25% pre-consumer recycled content. The luxurious patterns in Lakir are created with Durkan’s exclusive Definity...
Meet Homegrown, the latest woven broadloom from our Karastan luxury line. Homegrown is a stately flooring solution that offers the design community classic craftsmanship in high-end visuals. The artisanal woven construction creates a highly textured, luxurious carpet and seven neutral colorways enhance its sophistication and elegance. Homegrown epitomizes our Karastan line, reliving its timeless, sophisticated legacy. Merging classic construction with today’s desire for extreme texture, it provides a sensory...
WELL Building—the name itself is very intriguing and makes you want to take notice. This is exactly what is happening in the industry, where along with environmental impact, health and wellness has taken equal importance. You might wonder what relation do health and buildings have—health is more related to the food you eat and exercise you do. But the built environment can and does...
The Color and Design Vision is where we at Mohawk Group share our vision for the coming 18 months, forecasting what we believe are the leading concepts that fuel our current product development and inspire our customers with relevant, meaningful color and design insight. We explore cultural themes and trends affecting design today. We look what is happening in the world from this cultural context, studying social trends, demographics, and the...
With a focus on creativity and collaborative design, we are extremely excited about our highly anticipated Mohawk Group Light Lab Design Center. Commercial Design, Hospitality Design, Product Development, Special Order Contract, Simulation and Hospitality Preorder teams, which includes almost 80 people, are now moved into the space. Our Light Lab, designed in collaboration with SCAD, is an environment that not only brings together all of...
Martin Lesjak explains the design concept for our NeoCon 2016 showroom as “a vision of transformative atmosphere, providing a multifunctional and flexible open space.” Customers will experience this transformation in suite 377 during our industry’s largest 3-day event. NeoCon 2016 at Mohawk Group will be taking flooring to a new level of design versatility. Our NeoCon showroom has gone from Floors That Move You to...
Are you heading to New York City for NYCxDesign? Fear not, we have your guide of the must-see things to do while you are here for design week. Your guide is Royce Epstein, our Director of Design Segment, who lives in NYC and has recommendations for what to see and do, where to eat, and where to shop. Let’s begin! WHAT TO SEE AND...
When Toyota decided to update its Customer Service Center East in Baltimore, Maryland, it took a novel approach. It asked the people working there: What will help you do your business better? About 500 team members work at the 12-year-old facility providing loan and financial services to the car manufacturer’s thousands of customers. Toyota occupies all five floors of the building. The renovation...
Each April, about 300,000 people descend on Milan, Italy to attend Salone del Mobile, or the Italian Furniture Fair. The fair is enormous and is held just outside the city in an exhibition complex with multiple halls devoted to different kinds of furniture, kitchen and bath, and lighting. I attended the fair with Jackie Dettmar, our vice president of design and product development in...
Durkan recently hosted a fantastic Design Summit at Barnsley Gardens, Georgia, where A&D customers – as well as end users and media – were treated to trend presentations, hospitality product development previews, and a special keynote talk by Janet Echelman. Echelman is an artist who works on a grand scale with fishnet, light and air. But to merely call her a fiber artist doesn’t do justice...
Now that the first signs of Spring are upon us, bright hyper yellow is both relevant and inspirational. This intense color is found in the outer spectrum of hues in nature, as with daffodils and forsythia, but it is also a color of technology and action. Refreshing, energizing, and often a shock to the system, hyper yellow awakens our senses and calls attention to...
We live in an age where we thrive on the experience. We seek out opportunities to do something truly different and celebrate the outcome. We are more comfortable using online tools than at any point in history and believe that through technology almost anything is possible. Today, we can create our own sneakers, jeans, outerwear and even M&M’s! We’re excited to play in this...
The term Gamification has entered our daily lexicon, referencing how video games and pop culture continue to influence our millennial inspired lifestyles. The visual language and behavioral aspect of gaming has filtered down into much of design and consumer behavior. Technology has allowed for competition and game-like formats to enter into everything that we do; it’s entered the Corporate and Education market sectors in...
Evansville-Vanderburgh Schools, the second largest school system in Indiana, has plenty of students—22,000 of them—and plenty of spaces with varying flooring needs. But, like all school districts, it is always short on time and money. “We have 5 million square feet of building,” said Pat Tuley, CFO. “We have a lot of needs in terms of carpeting and flooring, and we know, since we’re not going to have money to replace carpet every 10 or...
Royce Epstein, director of design segment at Mohawk Group, weighs in on design trends that are influencing today’s education interiors. Royce’s extensive professional career includes more than 20 years in interior design. In her role at Mohawk Group, Royce shares her passion and vision for design, cultural trends and the meaning of materials in a broad context. Constantly on the watch for new trends in...
This is the David Tom’s Academy 265, a world-class instruction and training facility for golfers of all skill levels. Located in Shreveport, Louisiana, David Tom’s Academy 265 gets its name from David Toms’ winning score at the 2001 PGA Championship. His score of 265 still stands as the lowest aggregate total in major golf championship history! And Mohawk Group is proud to have its...
Bold thinking has always been a part of the Galt House Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky. After all, it was in the first Galt House in 1864 that Union generals Ulysses S. Grant and William Sherman devised their audacious military strategy to capture Atlanta. More than 120 years later, in 1985, the Galt House installed one of the largest geothermal heating and air conditioning systems...
There has been an increased interest in materials and materiality in design. Emerging trends have risen around marble and stone patterns. Concurrently, we are seeing a trend in the use of terrazzo. Terrazzo is an age-old agglomerate or composite material, meaning it has a base and suspended particles. The base is usually a cementitious binder that holds chips of another material. Traditionally these chip...
When David Jones passed away on January 10th, the world lost one of the most influential and iconic artists to ever grace the stage. Known to all as musician David Bowie, he was so much more than a chameleon rock star. Bowie crafted his five-decade career with great finesse, overseeing every concept, every detail, and every persona with an overarching desire to make sense...
All of us know intuitively that fresh air in buildings is better for people. But did you know that it makes us smarter and our businesses more profitable? The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health has released their results of breakthrough research entitled: Associations of Cognitive Function Scores with Carbon Dioxide, Ventilation, and Volatile Organic Compound Exposures in Office Workers: A Controlled Exposure Study...
Fabric on the floor changes the space immediately, and carpet spanning an entire space claims the room as a unique domain. My very first idea for Energy Field, a long-running art installation at the Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College, was to install a wall-to-wall carpet with an engineered design based on one of my bold graphic artworks. I...
Pantone this year announced two Colors of the Year for 2016: Rose Quartz and Serenity. With an interest in health, wellness, and sustainability, we are seeking interiors and products to help us relax, decompress, and stay calm in our frenzied 24/7 existence. For us at Mohawk Group, these soft pastel colors speak to the resurgence of soothing colors from the past. The desire for...
To celebrate the launch of Moving Floors, we invited product design collaborators, 13&9 Design, to ‘takeover’ our Instagram account. These prolific designers gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the inspiration for this collection. Inspiration boards and concepts highlighting fashion, art and social trends were exemplified through bold, striking images and curated to tell the story of Moving Floors’ 4th dimension. Below are some of...
As 2016 begins, we remain steadfast in our goals for a healthy and prosperous New Year, all while reflecting back on the year that was. With a new year comes new resolutions to look and feel our best. Today’s trend of natural wood framed mirrors and clothing stands/coat racks fit right in with our desire to embrace health and wellness at home, with a...
With the chaos of 2015 finally coming to a close, we find ourselves seeking creature comforts and retreating into our homes for comfort and protection. A primitive grey palette has emerged to soothe our anxious souls and provide respite for our world-weary eyes that have been exposed to 24-7 streaming of news and images. Exaggerated block forms reinforce our need for stability, protection, and...