Rug life

Illustrator and designer Oliver James Mayes has taken his practice from 2D to 3D in the form of a range of rugs, designed from London and created in the more exotic environs of Kashmir, India

Origin

Mayes was inspired to create the range on a recent trip to India, where he came across the unusual woollen Numduh rugs in a bazaar. Forging a relationship with a local craftswoman, he set about designing his own rugs, using the 100 per cent wool format he first saw in the markets.

Stuttering

The six rugs are to go on show this weekend in an exhibition entitled Longstop, to be held at the South Place Hotel in London, which boasts interiors by Conran + Partners.
Mayes says, ‘A lot of my paintings have been inspired but the idea of time and distance, and simplifying that down to lines and shapes’.
The pared-based designs are based around a series of vertical lines and rectangles, and have been created in two colourways – orange and black.
Mayes graduated from Central St Martins in graphic design in 2011, though describes himself as an artist – which is evident, perhaps, in the titles he’s given to each of the three patterns.
The series of four long rectangles has been dubbed Returning to Origin:

Direct

Longstop runs from 26 – 27 April at South Place Hotel, 3 South Place, London EC2M 2AF

(Thu, 24 Apr 2014 Design Week)