Design Pool's Cryptology Collection at Domanda Design
This year at NeoCon, Domanda Design’s sister company, Design Pool, is debuting The Cryptology Collections. This collection of twenty patterns was inspired by code, the hidden messages they communicate, and the women codebreakers of World War II. Within the collection, there are four smaller groups, designed with specific markets in mind: upholstery, wallcovering, vinyl flooring, and acoustic panels.
Founder and designer of this collection, Kristen Dettoni, had this to say about the collection. “When I first learned about the women codebreakers from this era, I felt an immediate kinship. Like them, I have worked with patterns my whole career and know their power to communicate in our lives. Through this collection, I hope to spark a conversation about what interior designers communicate in a built environment through their choices in materials and patterns.”
Codemaking and codebreaking may seem like a strange source of inspiration for a pattern designer. But it's actually not that big of a leap when you realize breaking codes is all about looking for patterns.
The spark of inspiration for this collection came after reading a book about Elizebeth Smith Friedman. Elizebeth was one the first people to realize you don’t need to focus on linguistics to break someone's coded message. Instead, you needed to look for patterns. She used these skills working for the US government during WWI, prohibition, and WWII.
Using patterns to communicate connected with us.
This focus on patterns to communicate got us thinking about how we also use patterns to communicate as textile designers. And interior designers use our patterns in their material selection to communicate something in a built environment. Designers purposefully choose the right pattern for the need of the space.
Playing with this idea of patterns as communicators, Kristen started each design in The Cryptology Collections with a secret coded message. That line of code became shapes and patterns. It may look like a flower or a stripe, but each design has another layer of meaning. And those messages all pay homage to Elizebeth and the other women codebreakers of her era, whose work went unrecognized during their lifetimes.
And now we’re bringing these patterns to Domanda Design.
We are so excited to offer these patterns directly to consumers at Domanda Design. Look for patterns from The Cryptology Collections on bags, notebooks, bedding, and all your favorite products.
This blog post was written by Kristin Crane.
