Are soft textiles making a comeback? It’s not furniture, curtains, or wall coverings, per se, but an innovation in interior design: a new typology (or a new interpretation) of the use of textiles developed by the Bouroullec brothers for Kvadrat. Tactile and sculptural, Clouds can be hung on the wall or from the ceiling, placed on the floor, or along railing and stairs. “Cloud evolves as you add elements to it, producing a unique three-dimensional effect, coating architecture in a fluid yet [dynamic] way.”

Clouds. Designed by the Bouroullec Brothers for Kvadrat.

In an older industrial building on Copenhagen harbour is Kvadrat’s new showroom, their second in Stockholm, designed Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec. “A large Clouds motorized wall opens and closes with a touch of a switch.”  Hanging from the ceiling, it coats the side wall, softening the general acoustics but when necessary, splits the space between the showroom and office area.  The French brothers were  seduced (and guided) by the long, narrow space, with open windows on either end and a direct view onto the sea.  They wanted light to diffuse from one window to another, with no wall to stop it, and were determined to occupy the space “just like nomads would settle into a new place”: without intervening on the walls. Through the use of their own Clouds, they expertly achieved this.

Clouds banishes the traditional rectangular element. The triangulation of individual tiles enables infinite three-dimensional forms to emerge as the tiles are attached to one another with special rubber bands. “The point of Clouds is that we do not have to replace all of the things that are already in our homes. Clouds is an extra and new element that provides the opportunity for personalised design where individuals are the architect, designer and workman. The ingenious click system, combined with a couple of simple screws and strings makes it possible to create anything from a wall to a specific figure and expression to fit one’s taste. ,” concludes Anders Byriel, CEO of Kvadrat. The tiles can easily be arranged and rearranged, creating individualized geometric abstract shapes without custom work or expensive installation.

Clouds was conceived when the Bouroullec brothers were developing the North Tiles project for Kvadrat. Available in 2 Kvadrat fabrics and 7 color combinations, Clouds is a lighter version of the North Tiles project, developed specifically for the home market.

The soft textile trend can be seen with Touch Wall Panels designed by Nuno Gonçalves Ferreira and Erin Hayne of Nuno Erin, and Molo’s Softwall — also in a thoroughly unique way with Knottnerus’ Phat Knits.