Artist Gabriel Dawe was born in Mexico City. As a child, Dawe was encouraged by his mother to express himself creatively by drawing and painting. Growing up, he spent time visiting museums in Mexico City with the Museo de Arte Moderno and Centro Cultural de Arte Contemporáneo being standouts. Here, he was introduced to the work of artists Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and one of his personal favorites, the Mexican surrealist painter, Ru no Tamayo. Later important artistic in uences included Andy Warhol and James Turrell.
He went on to study graphic design at the Universidad de las Américas in Puebla, Mexico. This program provided him with a strong training in design as well as a foundation for the arts. He moved to Montreal, Canada and took a job at a small design studio. The desire to express himself creatively and to explore the possibilities outside of design led him to become an artist. His rst solo exhibition was presented at a small yoga/studio and gallery. The show’s title, The Light Within the Shadow, seems to foreshadow the type of work and installations that have come to de ne him as an artist many years later.
Roby Isaac, Vice President of Design for Mannington Commercial, approached Gabriel Dawe regarding the possibility of a collaboration and developing a collection of oorcovering. Given that Dawe had not designed product previously, he jumped at the chance to work with Mannington. The formalized product, The Moiré Collection, consisting of three patterns of modular plank and one pattern of broadloom, is the result of this design effort.
The inspiration for The Moiré Collection and the basis for the collection was inspired by Dawe’s work where miles of colorful threads are con gured into forms that result in unique planes of depth, lled with rays of light. In textile or print design, moiré is described as a wavy or rippled textured effect where sets of lines or dots are superimposed upon one another creating sets of patterns differing in size and spacing. Dawe’s art installations are made of a succession and crisscrossing of lines that shift in space, which create wonderful and playful sights where viewers are able to see and experience three-dimensionally. Dawe took this same idea and translated it into a two-dimensional image using a combination of layers of lines and his signature full spectrum of colors.
Dawe commented about his work with Mannington Commercial: “Overall, it has been a fantastic experience. I didn’t expect it (the product) to be so authentic. It is like peeking into one of my installations and seeing it translated as a oorcovering.” Dawe said that even though The Moiré Collection is intended for high traffic commercial environments, he hopes to take a section of broadloom (from Visible Light pattern) and transform it into a rug for his own living room.
Vice President of Design, Roby Isaac said, “Translating a world-renowned artist’s vision into a functional oorcovering has been a challenge that Mannington eagerly embraced. As designers, the idea of channeling Dawe’s complex and intricate creations into something tactile was an incredible undertaking. We were thrilled that he was keen to collaborate with Mannington and to understand what we, as a brand, were hoping to achieve.” The challenge of creating linear layers and bands of colors in modular plank and broadloom applications in The Moiré Collection--made possible from a high luster Antron Legacy yarn system--adds an element of dimensionality in a oor covering that is unrivaled.
In addition to the premiere of The Moiré Collection of modular plank and broadloom ooring, Gabriel Dawe will create a site-specific installation at NeoCon to celebrate his partnership with Mannington Commercial. This original commission, which will be located at the Mart’s Northeast Corridor, near Starbucks, will be unveiled in June and will remain on view through September.
Amanda Swindall, Commercial Marketing Director for Mannington Commercial
said, “This colorful installation re ects Gabriel Dawe’s vision and talent, and we are delighted to celebrate and share his work with everyone during NeoCon. We hope that all attendees that visit the Merchandise Mart will be lled with wonder as we have been.”
The Moiré Collection, based on the work of globally-recognized, installation artist Gabriel Dawe, is anticipated to be one of 2018’s most exciting ooring collections from Mannington Commercial. The Mannington Design Studio in collaboration with Gabriel Dawe developed one style of broadloom and three styles of modular plank for The Moiré Collection.
The Moiré Collection was presented in Chicago at NeoCon June 11-13, 2018 in the Mannington Commercial showroom, #1039.