Harlem Toile

As an African American living in Harlem, I have always been intrigued and inspired by the historical narrative of the decorative arts, especially traditional French toile with its pastoral motifs from the late 1700s. I'm entertained by the stories these patterns tell and the questions they sometimes raise. But after searching for many years for the perfect toile for my own home, I decided that it quite simply didn’t exist. I created Harlem Toile de Jouy initially as a wall covering then expanded the collection to include fabrics, bedding, plates, glassware, umbrellas and clothing. This design (which lampoons some of the stereotypes deeply woven into the African American experience), has been featured in the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Museum of Art and Design in New York City, the the Musée De La Toile De Jouy in France and San Francisco’s Museum of the African Diaspora. I am honored to have my Harlem Toile De Jouy wallpaper included in the permanent collections of the Brooklyn Museum, the Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, RISD Museum, the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and most recently– the Victoria and Albert Museum.