Maya Romanoff:
The Innovative Spirit Impacting the
World of Design
When Maya Romanoff lived the ultimate student experience at the University
of California in Berkeley in the sixties, he probably never imagined
that his studies in anthropology, archeology and art would lead him
to where he is today: artist, inventor, and director of the Maya Romanoff
Corporation; the leading manufacturer of innovative wall covering and
surfacing materials impacting the world of design.
Maya’s journey began with post-university travels to such exotic
places as North Africa, where he observed art as part and parcel of
everyday life in the guise of usable, wearable art such as textiles.
From the organic beauty of Africa he moved to the glamour of Paris’ couture
houses, garnering practical business skills while appeasing his growing
interest in textiles and functional art.
It was during Woodstock that Maya discovered the intriguing technique
of tie-dye, and the spirit of innovation that continues to live in his
work. His fascination with making things, using common materials to
create uncommon art, and creating art through a hands-on experience
was born.
“It all clicked,” explains Romanoff, “I was
struck by the ingenuity of the tie-dye designs that I saw. At
that moment, I had found my life’s work.”
Romanoff’s artistic epiphany led to intense experimentation with
the technique, delivering gorgeous fabrics that swept earthy tie-dye
into the realm of haute couture. Further work with resist dye techniques
led to a collection of beautifully designed clothing, aptly named Wearable
Art, which sold in top retail establishments across the country, including
Henri Bendel, Ultimo and I.Magnin. Romanoff’s reputation grew
and soon he was besieged by requests for custom pieces, including a
fantastic leather vest for rock idol Roger Daltry of The Who.
Romanoff’s attraction to textiles and unconventional materials
as his medium of choice expanded and evolved. “Once I started
working with fabrics and dyes, I knew what I wanted to do the rest of
my life. I had painted and drawn, but I always saw myself in my
work. I couldn’t stand it,” says Romanoff. “When
I started working with natural dyes and materials I saw myself taken
out of the work – it was liberating!”
In 1969 he established the Maya Romanoff Corporation to bring his artistic
creations to profitable fruition. The Chicago based corporation has
remained true to Maya’s founding vision: to transform modern design
by combining ancient artistic techniques with the latest production
technology, all with a keen regard for nature and environmental concerns.
Going hand-in-hand with this guiding vision is Romanoff’s deep
affinity with Eastern philosophy, which has informed and impacted positively
every aspect of his personal life and his company’s culture. From
the connections between co-workers and solid relationships with outside
mills to the interplay of creativity and the environment, an Eastern
approach subtly shines through.
As the company grew, Romanoff’s main focus became the development
of unique production techniques, and the year 1976 marked Romanoff’s
introduction of the first widely available handcrafted, resist dyed
fabric and floor covering to the industry. Throughout the seventies
Romanoff wore two hats, splitting his focus between business and art.
As the art world became enamored with resist-dye techniques and textiles
Romanoff received international acclaim and was repeatedly called upon
to create exhibitions and environments that showcased fabrics as fluid
works of art. Among his many outstanding exhibitions was New York’s
Museum of Contemporary Arts’ 1972 Fabric Vibrations, the
first to address this emerging contemporary American art form, before
becoming an international exhibition.
As the corporation surged forward in the eighties, Romanoff continued
to explore fabric as an expression of unbridled art, and continued to
earn accolades for his efforts. “Anywhere a piece of fabric
can go – whether or not it has ever been there before – is
where I put my textiles,” states Romanoff. Indoor or outdoor,
draping buildings’ facades or flowing internally, Romanoff’s
art on a massive, moving scale created a stir. The Chicago Sun-Times
building got a shot of adrenalin when Romanoff suspended 28 brightly
colored ribbons from the seventh floor terrace down to the Chicago River,
festooning the industrial structure in warm, vibrant colors. Two of
his many other noteworthy outdoor projects included Sleeves of Spring,
his 1980 exhibit that involved draping Belvedere Castle in New York’s
Central Park and 1982’s God’s Eye, which similarly
swathed the entire facade of the Chicago Cultural Center.
Never content to stick with the status quo, Romanoff sought inspiration
and education from other countries and cultures. A trip to Japan
uncovered an ancient method of papermaking that
could be re-worked and translated into a modern
process, therefore making more of his more avant-garde wall covering
concepts marketable. Fortunately,
Romanoff states, “I never cared how difficult things were to
make,” as it took several years of painstaking trial and error
in Japan to perfect the process that ultimately produced the Jewel Collection.
Romanoff’s endeavors have paid off, bringing the corporation
and himself clearly into focus as a prime resource for top interior
designers and architects. He credits his wife Joyce with being the strong
business push behind his artistic efforts. “We balance each other,
we’re a great team,” explains Romanoff, “and that’s
as vital in business as it is in life.” Since joining him in 1989
she has elevated the already successful business by
increasing its visibility, fine-tuning product
consistency and stepping up the volume of production, all while maintaining
the integrity of the corporation and Maya’s vision.
In the rarified atmosphere of interior furnishings design, Romanoff
leads the field. He has been the recipient of countless awards over
the years, including The International Furnishings and Design Association’s
Trailblazer Award, Metropolitan Home’s Top 100 Designs
2004, NEOCON’s Best of Show, and International Contemporary Furniture
Fair’s Editor’s Award. Romanoff’s ability to step
beyond the ordinary, and his affinity for organic beauty, has led to
the creation of delightful and unexpected surface coverings for walls
and floors.
“To work with Maya Romanoff is a privilege,” said Albert
Hadley, of Parish-Hadley Inc., arbiter of design excellence in interior
design.
While fabrics, vinyl and wood have been used extensively in prior collections,
lately Romanoff has given free reign to his love of natural, genuine
materials. Gold leaf, mica, grass and bamboo are part of the mix, but
perhaps the most captivating introduction of late has been Beadazzled,
a collection of wall coverings amazingly madefrom tiny glass beads.
The collection has not only has taken the interior furnishings world
by storm, but has earned a prestigious, permanent place in the Cooper-Hewitt
National Design Museum.
What’s next in line for this Renaissance man and his successful
company? The challenge of consistently coming up with new ideas and
maintaining the integrity of existing products is what drives him on. “Making
one beautiful thing is easy – making something beautiful over
and over again is what’s difficult. But that’s what
I thrive on,” notes Romanoff.
Eco‐Sensitivity is Ingrained in
Everything from Maya
Romanoff
Eco‐Sensitivity is Ingrained in Everything from Maya
Romanoff
When it comes to environmental concerns, the Maya Romanoff
Corporation is way
ahead of the crowd. Long before the virtues of green
living hit the general public and
buzzwords like “sustainable” and “eco‐friendly” rolled
off everyone’s tongue, the Maya
Romanoff Corporation has been green for 39 years quietly
doing its part to protect the
environment and its inhabitants while creating beautiful,
innovative surface coverings.
“Environmental responsibility has always been a large part of
who we are,” says Joyce
Romanoff, president. “Our underlying philosophies on sustainability
and limiting our
impact on the earth’s future stems from Maya himself: his belief
in the Eastern
philosophy of respect for materials, and respect for
the world in which we live – near
and far.”
Striking wall coverings of gleaming hand worked copper
and sparkling glass beads
might make it hard to believe, but that the majority
of Romanoff’s products are “green”
in the true sense of the word. For instance, the capiz
shells used to create the Mother of
Pearl™ collection are actually a prolific, fast‐renewing resource,
harvested from the
Indian Ocean in an ecologically mindful manner.
In a similar vein, the Ajiro+ line of wall coverings
is made from farm‐raised, sustainable
hardwoods such as the Pawlonia tree: a fast growing deciduous
tree that reaches heights
in 3 to 5 years that other hardwoods take generations
to reach. Ajiro’s manufacturing
process is eco‐friendly as well ‐ using the remnants
of the larger products to
manufacture the smaller patterns, and even utilizing
all remaining wood shavings as
packing materials.
The True Metals™ Collection was born after numerous trips to Nepal
and working
under the auspices of Aid to Artisans. Each piece, overseen
by four Tamrakar family
members, is cut by hand using only recycled and locally
sourced metal which eliminates
wastage. The scrap metals are sold to statue makers in
Patan & Bouda. Itʹs still the
Nepali way to pass on oneʹs trade to the next generation.
The True Metals™ tiles are
coated with wax, as in Renaissance times. The wax is
a combination of beeswax and
paraffin which is sourced directly from small bee farmers.
From the source of the materials to the production and
delivery processes, the company
strives to minimize its impact on the environment. Many
of the surface coverings are
produced in Romanoff’s Chicago studio, giving the company a great
deal of control over
what goes into the products and how they are produced.
When production is off‐site,
Romanoff works only with mills that adhere to strict
environmental standards and use
fair labor practices.
A major commitment of the company has been to its manufacturing
processes, which
has been fine‐tuned to produce a minimum amount of effluent.
Whenever possible
water‐based adhesives, dyes and finishes are used, and
even their lacquer‐based finish is
98% eco‐friendly, with a fully water‐based replacement
in the works.
“To manufacture products in an Environmentally sensitive manner
is undoubtedly more
of a challenge,” says Romanoff, “but for me it’s the
only way.” “In order to take personal
satisfaction in any product we produce I have to know
that it’s not only beautiful, but
produced in a responsible manner.”