A San Francisco-based decorative artist, Caroline Lizarraga is renowned for her large-scale hand-painted murals. Her beautiful displays are highlighted in public and private arenas from Bay Area restaurants to luxury homes. And now, Caroline’s work is more accessible than ever.
Earlier this year the artist launched her first wallpaper collection in collaboration with Parete. Daniela Guarin, Partner + Creative Director of Parete, joins us this week to discuss working with Caroline to bring the collection of six fun and colorful designs to life.
Raymond Paul Schneider: When did you first start to develop this new collection?
Daniela Guarin: We were introduced to Caroline through a mutual friend, and we had an introductory meeting in February 2023. Immediately, we felt the chemistry and fondness and knew we wanted to explore this collaboration. We talked about design visions and what we were hoping to explore as we translated her hand-painted designs into wallpaper.
RPS: What was the overall timeline from conception to achieving the final design?
DG: It took approximately eight months to create the collection but around a year to launch it entirely, as we needed to finalize sampling and marketing to get our showroom partners ready for distribution. The process was very organic and satisfying; we got along beautifully. Caroline presented her ideas from her point of view of what she was seeing in her work, and we presented our ideas on colorways, scale, and, of course, our vast access to various substrates and grounds. We knew the collection had to be equally visually stunning and tactile. The back and forth of creating this collection were one of our most fulfilling collaborations.
RPS: What was your initial inspiration, and where did the idea(s) come from?
DG: We decided in our original meeting that we wanted wallpaper that didn’t compete with what Caroline already does. What she produced were very technically challenging samples that would usually take very long or be very expensive to achieve. By translating these into wallpaper we broaden designers with the possibility of using a Caroline Lizarraga original. Every technique was meticulously chosen specifically for its artistry and technical complexity.
RPS: Please describe your overall creative and design process.
DG: As two creatives, Caroline and Parete, are maximalists, it was a fun dynamic to explore. We played with scale, color, and substrates a lot until we reached the right look. We tried to marry designs to substrates we knew could complement what already existed. We had meetings at several stages to touch base on progress, and we visualized the wallcoverings in various settings digitally so they could inform our final decision.
RPS: Did you have a specific audience or theme in mind?
DG: We love this collection for all the designers out there who want to use Caroline in their projects, but it might not be possible due to budget constraints or timing. One of the main reasons we launched this collaboration was to make Caroline’s work more accessible to the general public, as she is usually booked well in advance. As always, this collection and most of what we do is for those maximalists at heart. However, we did make sure to include some more toned-down neutrals because we all know neutrals will always be in!
RPS: Please describe the methods, tools, and materials Parete used to develop and prototype this design.
DG: All the designs started as hand-painted samples in 36” x 36” on MDF. We digitally scanned them at a high resolution and manipulated them to turn them into repeats and murals. We printed each design on different papers and made final decisions based on the winning combination of texture and color.
RPS: Did Parete utilize a new technique or technology to conceptualize or create this product?
DG: The beauty of this collection is that it was brought to life in time-honored old-fashioned ways, with Caroline hand-painting her ideas and concepts, shipping the samples to us for scanning, and then, ultimately, color work to develop the repeat and scale. We LOVE technology, but the old-fashioned ways are often the most satisfying and lend true artistry to these papers.
RPS: Please describe any challenges that affected the design and perhaps steered you to an entirely new final design?
DG: Time was an issue at specific stages as we had to trial multiple scales and colorways to particular designs to get it just right. Our goal was to launch in DECO OFF 2024, and one specific pattern, String of Pearls, almost didn’t make it as we had some last-minute edits. We also went back several times back and forth to find the right balance between colorful and neutral. A lot of our designers like bold and edgy, yet we also like to provide more “quiet luxury” options, so finding that balance and sweet spot was a conversation that took multiple iterations.
RPS: Describe your overall brand DNA and Ethos.
DG: This collection is an excellent reflection of both of our brands. It is playful, fun, and edgy. It does not take itself too seriously, as we named products like Toot My Horn, Plastered, and I Lost My Marbles, but it has uttermost respect for the craft. We are artists first, with a deep respect for making things worth creating. We don’t believe in making filler products or just launching stuff before they are ready. We take our time perfecting the craft. However, we also love the idea of art not being pretentious; we love design that is accessible and brings people joy.
Click here to see more of our “Anatomy of a Design” series.
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