Chicago—Mohawk is partnering with ArtLifting to champion artists who are impacted by housing insecurity or disabilities. ArtLifting provides a platform and creates opportunities for underrepresented artists to amplify their voices and participate in the contemporary art market. As part of the partnership, Mohawk Group will launch two collections here at NeoCon: Painted Perspectives and Social Canvas.
Together, Mohawk Group said it is empowering six artists through a collaboration to create carpet and flooring collections to be manufactured and sold by Mohawk Group. Each artist is valued to participate, respected for their diversity and compensated for the use of their work, as well as support of the organization’s mission, the company said.
“My goal is to make their invisible talents visible, and by doing so change stereotypes,” said ArtLifting’s co-founder and CEO, Liz Powers. “Instead of defining people by their circumstance, we should define them by their talent.”
According to Mohawk, the first of the two collections, Painted Perspectives, expresses the inclusive power of art and its ability to create communities. Durkan, the hospitality brand of Mohawk Group, brought together divergent artistic styles, putting them in conversation and celebrating the beauty that emerges from a shared practice of visual arts, the brand said. The soft surface collection developed from the work of two artists, Alicia Sterling Beach and Scott Benner, both of whom are part of the ArtLifting community.
Designers from Mohawk Group’s in-house studio said they were inspired by the work of Beach and Benner and created carpet patterns that integrated layers, textures and techniques from the artists. Drawing on Beach’s work, styles express a sense of fluidity, the soft play of light on elements in nature and a striking mix of color. From Benner’s work comes a sense of drama and structure built up from crisp detail, and an interplay of nature and geometry. Certain styles put one artist’s work in greater focus, while other styles fully unite them into one multi-faceted aesthetic, the company said. Designers can deploy the styles across different spaces to compose unique stories for their interiors.
Mohawk Group’s Social Canvas collection is designed to speak to the triumph of the human spirit. Social Canvas conveys the expression and poignancy of Charlie French’s abstract painterly style, depicted in multiple styles, each viewed as a different canvas, the company said. The styles in this collection span chunky and smooth textures, colorful brushwork, and have a refined palette. Social Canvas serves as a focal point, or artistic accent, to bring the warmth of the human spirit into spaces for all to feel welcome and supported, the company said.
By creating this partnership, Mohawk Group said it hopes to provide deeper purpose of design through art, emotional connection and action. By choosing to design for the greater good, Mohawk works with the greater community to eliminate barriers and create positive social change all, the company said.
Experience these products in person this spring. Social Canvas will appear at NeoCon (booth #377) along with Painted Perspectives June 13-15.