Whimsy on the Wall

Richard Cannon and Richard Bullock couldn’t possibly have a pet at home. If they had, the Los Angeles-based interior design duo probably wouldn’t have conceived their new collection of wallpapers, many of which feature strips of dangling burnished silk ribbon sewn onto the paper and tied into delicate little bows at neatly spaced intervals.

The papers, first introduced in 1995, were never intended to be “normal wall covering, but essentially a design tool,” Bullock says. The hand-painted papers, which are made of translucent Chinese mulberry paper and often patterned after Italian and Far Eastern wrought-iron gate designs, incorporate ribbons as well as sophisticated hand-stenciled and colored patterns to create the illusion of texture.

The process, Bullock says, is so difficult and time-consuming that the designers can only produce 30 21-by-30-inch sheets per day. Because of the artisan aspect of the work, both Cannon and Bullock say homeowners working in specific colors and design schemes can order the papers to their own specifications.

Cannon/Bullock wallcoverings are available through the Donghia showroom at the Pacific Design Center, which is open to the public through the PDC’s concierge office. The wall coverings also can be ordered directly through Cannon/Bullock at (213) 221-9286.