The Alt-Rock Aesthete

The influences of the Bloomsbury Group appear in the most unlikely of places. Who would have thought that a former Smashing Pumpkin would commission a painstaking reproduction of hand-stenciled paisley patterns from Charleston House on the walls of his East Village apartment? Yet guitarist James Iha did just that. 

And it's glorious.

(Photograph by Joanne Chan)

I love that given Iha's sturm und drang-fueled, goth-rock musical style, his design sensibility extends toward a muted palette, antique furniture and a sedate country-house vibe.

(Photograph by Joanne Chan)

Here's a photo of the original room in Charleston House, decorated in the 1920's by Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant. Fabulous, no? The undulating pattern of apostrophe-shaped paisleys has a soft lyricism that still feels modern today. Even the curtain panels have a indie craft sensibility to them, and despite all the patterns on patterns, the room still reflects a sense of peace and tranquility. 

( Photograph by Alen MacWeeney from 

"Charleston: A Bloomsbury House and Garden.")

If you admire the lushness of those muted hues but don't fancy the idea (and cost) of having it hand-stenciled, don't despair. I think Cole and Son's "Egerton" wallpaper, seen below, shares a strong emotional resonance to the work of Grant and Bell. 

(Photograph by Max Kim-Bee)

I used it in my own bathroom and find it imparts a gentle awakening on those mornings in which my brain feels like a slightly dented gourd.

(9/6/09)