Toile de Jouy is named after the French town of Jouy-en-Josas, where it got its start in the 18th century. That explains all those pastoral scenes peopled by farmers in Colonial-era garb. Yet these toile designs also telegraphed the news of the world, whether it be balloon voyages, the American victory in a revolutionary war or the toppling of a king. You can still buy those designs as wallpaper or fabric.
You can also purchase toiles that reflect today’s times, whether it be the United Kingdom during the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, the vibrancy of Brooklyn, N.Y., or even events as mundane as weekly trash day. Toile wallpapers from makers like Brooklyn’s Flavor Paper, Scotland’s Timorous Beasties or Studio Printworks of Hoboken, N.J., comment on the world around us with a sometimes sardonic eye.
“The idea is to be more tongue-in-cheek,” said Dennis Shah, founder, president and owner of Studio Printworks. “Why not have a little fun?”
Contemporary toiles like these can be used wherever you want, he added. If you’re “a little shy,” consider toile for the guest bathroom or the interior closet, he suggested, noting the design is sure to be a conversation piece.
“After a party a guest comes out and say, ‘Is that what I think I saw?’” Shah said.
Here are some great modern toile designs:
1. BAY AREA TOILE
Artist Matt Richie and Jorma Taccone, actor and member of The Lonely Island comedy troupe, are credited with the design of this Flavor Paper pattern that portrays Bay Area legends. As listed on the company website, they include: rappers Too $hort Humpty Hump Mac Dre and E-40; Alice Waters of Chez Panisse fame; Joe Montana, retired football quarterback; Angela Davis, author, academic and activist; and Dennis Richmond, former television newscaster. Bay Area Toile. $200 per roll. Flavor Paper. https://www.flavorpaper.com
2. BROOKLYN TOILE
Mike Diamond of the Beastie Boys is one of the designers of this toile paper, originally destined for his Brooklyn home, according to Flavor Paper's website, which states that the design "captures the King's borough from Coney Island to Hasidic Jews to Notorious B.I.G. to our own Boerum Hill. Daily life in the bk dealing with subways, pigeons, b-boys makin' the freak freak and stroller moms is all up in there." Brooklyn Toile. $200 per roll. Flavor Paper. https://www.flavorpaper.com
3. DIA DE DUMBO TOILE
Dan Funderburgh, Brooklyn-based artist and designer, created this pattern originally for a new Mexican restaurant called Gran Electrica in Brooklyn's Dumbo neighborhood. The result is a humorous look at the hood through a skeletal Mexican viewpoint, according to Flavor Paper. Dia de DUMBO. $150 per roll. Flavor Paper. www.flavorpaper.com
4. PIN UP TOILE
Pierre Frey's printed cotton Pin Up toile is an amusing tribute to 1950s holidays at the seaside. Pierre Frey Pin Up toile, pierrefrey.com for pricing.
5. DIAMOND JUBILEE TOILE
Queen Elizabeth's 60 years on the throne in 2012 sparked this design, which uses some images also found in the company's London Toile and London Toile Bridgets patterns. Diamond Jubilee. 240 pounds ($312) per roll. Timorous Beasties. www.timorousbeasties.com
6. LONDON TOILE
A "portrait of a city," according to Timorous Beasties' publicity. Look for "gestures of total irreverence for authority, boredom, drunkenness, mugging, rioting, homelessness." Look, too, for "peaceful vignettes" of the city's "diversity and difference": "Children play with abandon, a Sikh sits in quiet contemplation, a Muslim mother strolls in a burqa with her pram." London Toile, $312 per roll. Timorous Beasties. www.timorousbeasties.com
7. NEW YORK TOILE
"The streets of New York are theatre sets on which folk play out the whole spectrum of private and public dramas with an intensity so unique to this city of universal wonder," according to Timorous Beasties. New York Toile. $312 per roll. Timorous Beasties. www.timorousbeasties.com
8. TRASH DAY TOILE
"The modern weekly ritual of curbside pickup" is how the Studio Printworks' website describes this Jessica Smith design. Trash Day. $220 per roll. Studio Printworks. www.studioprintworks.com
About the Author
