Design

Dugan Studio, which is emerging as a leading name in high-end fabrics. “My collections reflect escape and travel, capturing the spirit of jetsetting before jet-setting was fancy,” says Dugan. “There’s a breezy, optimistic quality to my compositions and patterns.” Sausalito is home to the artist/designer’s eponymous studio, but Dugan maintains a strong presence in Los Angeles.

As an artist, she finds textile design to be a natural outlet for her creativity and dramatic flair. Aside from the designer’s acclaimed Indian block prints, which bear the personal stamps of the artisans who print them, many Serena Dugan Studio fabrics are handcrafted in Los Angeles using solvent-free inks on Belgian linen. Significantly improved performance fabrics, originally designed for outdoor use, are now used indoors as well, particularly valued by families with children or pets.

After decades of disregard, wallpaper is again a prominent medium that innovative designers are reimagining. “Remembering some of the wallpaper I grew up with, I’d roll my eyes, thinking it was hopelessly out of style. But now no room is off limits for wallpaper,” she says. Dugan notes today’s consumers appreciate the luscious, tactile qualities of woven grasscloth and the paperweave coverings to which she affixes her modern, abstract motifs.

“I always assumed that more outlandish color combinations would be hard to sell, but that’s not necessarily the case,” she continues. “People have an appetite for bold colors that are well executed.” According to Dugan, designers and homeowners are exploring greens as a departure from prevailing blues; she suggests the next trend may involve oranges, reds and terra-cottas or shades of peach and apricot, as they are natural counterpoints to blues.

Dugan’s art, fabrics and wallpaper are offered in Los Angeles at Hollywood at Home, the showroom of designer Peter Dunham in the La Cienega Design Quarter; she is also collaborating with Erik Lindström, one of the most influential rug makers in the nation.

“Erik’s rugs are true works of art .... the prospect of blending my own

Here and below: fabrics and wallpapers by Serena Dugan Studio

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Background art by Vecteezy

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9/11 Sculptures: Vignettes of Emotion

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art into these beautifully crafted pieces had me thrilled,” recalls Dugan.

Though aware of Dugan’s work as a fabric designer, Lindström was particularly attracted to her art: “Serena’s paintings are colorful and graphic, two things that I look for when designing a rug collection,” he explains.

Dugan’s rug designs are the only products literally transferred from her paintings. The Serena Dugan collection by Erik Lindström reflects abstract creations inspired by the art and architecture of Mexico City and are named after three iconic neighborhoods: Condesa, Polanco and Roma.

Even as Dugan's repertory expands, she is a painter at heart; though proud of the Serena & Lily brand she helped build, she does not envision another all-encompassing line. Her current venture, she says, “is more personal, more attuned with my passions.”

Serena Dugan Studio 415.384.1178, serenadugan.com Erik Lindström 3717 W. Jefferson Blvd., L.A., 310.306.8700, eriklindstrom.com Hollywood at Home 703 N. La Cienega Blvd., L.A., 310.273.6200, hollywoodathome.com

STILL WATERS

Alice Waters’ Lulu at the UCLA Hammer Museum. / by jenn tanaka /

Lulu, the first Los Angeles restaurant from Chez Panisse founder Alice Waters, opened one year ago in the courtyard of UCLA’s Hammer Museum.

To complete their vision of the restaurant business model that would become Lulu, legendary chef and food activist Waters and Hammer Museum director Ann Philbin sought a chef who would not only celebrate seasonality and sustainable farming but who could also create a gathering place for art lovers and students.

In addition to his kitchen qualifications, chef David Tanis, a 25-year veteran of Chez Panisse, has written cookbooks and penned a column for The New York Times. Enhancing the experience, Jesse McBride, former food and beverage head at Chateau Marmont and the Standard hotel group, came on as director of operations.

In keeping with her core philosophies, Waters’ restaurant advocates regenerative farming. Even the decor is an ode to sustainability; designer Sean Daly collaborated with artist Christina Kim to create the indooroutdoor courtyard using local materials.

David Tanis, chef at Alilce Waters’ Lulu at the UCLA Hammer Museum, and, above, a Tanis spread.