5 MINUTES WITH… Print designer Anna Glover

The print designer and winner of the 2016 House Beautiful Editor’s Award is known for merging traditional and modern techniques to create intricate wallpapers. Now she has plans for your wardrobe…

WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO OPEN YOUR OWN STUDIO?

I’d been working in fashion, but I wanted to design on a much bigger scale – when producing garments you’re limited to dress size. I was convinced there was room for something new and exciting at the luxury end of the interiors market and set up my studio in 2013.

I now have four designers working with me on bespoke global projects. We’re located in Hackney Wick, east London, in an old, canal-side warehouse opposite the former Olympic stadium. We have a huge table for painting and rolling out the wallpapers, plenty of computers, and artwork on all the walls to constantly inspire us.

WHERE DO YOU FIND THE INSPIRATION FOR YOUR MURALS, PRINTS AND WALLPAPERS?

Because the projects I work on are so varied, I have to be really flexible. I’ve always looked to the work of Japanese master painters and wood-block prints for ideas, and I spend a lot of time researching contemporary and historical art, fashion and plant life.

HOW HAVE YOU MANAGED TO COMBINE HAND-PAINTING TECHNIQUES WITH DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY?

Painting by hand gives my work a rich, timeless quality. Combining it with modern computer technology allows me to create small production lines, for instance, when I’m working on a design for a single wall. Also, with technology there’s no limit to your colour and texture choices – you can capture every single brush mark and all of the very subtle details that add depth to a design. People often think my patterns are hand-painted directly onto every piece of silk!

YOU NOW HAVE A FASHION COLLECTION WITH H&M. HAS THIS BEEN INSPIRED BY YOUR DESIGNS FOR THE HOME?

Yes, H&M wanted me to translate the depth and storytelling found in my wallpapers into prints that people could wear every day.

The first challenge was the huge difference in scale. The second was the fact that when I design for the home, I work with a static object, whereas a garment is fluid, which will make the same pattern look very different. There are lots of crossover techniques though. And it helped, of course, to have a background in fashion.

FOR STORE DETAILS SEE WHERE TO BUY PAGE

LEFT The dark teal and delicate gold detailing of the Floating Gardenwallpaper by Anna Glover, available this September, adds some Art Deco style to the Single Derwentwall light and Round Tilt mirror from Drummonds

FROM TOP Anna Glover in her east London workplace. The Span daybed by Temper Studio is upholstered in elegantly patterned silk designed by Anna. She handpaints all of her designs, which are then digitally uploaded, with even the finest details transferred onto her wallpapers, fabrics and clothes for H&M