Working Hollywood: Tony Roche
The designer finds wallpaper design fascinating, and he's created a special one for 'X-Men: First Class.'
June 12, 2011|By Cristy Lytal, Special to the Los Angeles Times
For some, staring at wallpaper is as much fun as watching paint dry, but not for designer Tony Roche, who created a handmade silver leaf wallpaper on display in the 1960s-set mutant superhero saga "X-Men: First Class."
"I have to say, sometimes when you mention to people wallpaper, they glaze over slightly," he said. "It's a bit like saying you're interested in spotting trains. But it surprises me how beautiful wallpaper is, when a lot of people think of it as being rather domestic and boring. It's often seen as one of the lesser arts, but there's some great skill and creativity within it."
"Most kids used to cover their schoolbooks in brown paper, but because my dad was in the decorating business, I used to cover mine with wallpaper," he said. "And I actually think that was an influence on me in a strange way. I quite liked the mathematics of pattern and repeat. And also the precision appealed to me — the fact that it could be loose but precise."
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