On Tuesday evening, the industry gathered at the High Line Stages in Chelsea for “Perspective New York,” a special look at Sunbrella fabrics and how they can be integrated into the home—not just outside, but also inside.

“The Perspective program was based on the idea of showing people how to use Sunbrella fabrics for indoor upholstery and décor,” said Gina Wicker, Creative Director for Sunbrella Fabrics. “The series of videos and blogs has creatively provided viewers with fabric-based design solutions, from finding furniture and fabrics to working with an interior designer. Perspective New York evolves this program and brings to the forefront a multitude of design ideas specified from our high-end upholstery collections available through showrooms.”

Kate Kelly Smith, Hal Hunnicutt, Gina Wicker, Newell Turner

Sunbrella and the Hearst Design Group, which co-hosted the event, invited 12 interior designers to submit room designs using all Sunbrella textiles. Five vignettes were selected for full fabrication and were on display for guests to marvel at last Tuesday evening.

Designers selected for vignette build-outs were Brian Patrick Flynn, Alex Gaston, Drew McGukin, Kate Jackson and Brian Paquette—whose submitted designs collectively spanned the color and style spectrum.

Brian Patrick Flynn

“I decided to do a play on pastels,” Flynn said. “It’s something I would never do, but I went through Sunbrella’s pastels and they had amazing pinks, blues and greens. There were fabrics with all these different textures and that’s what made it work."

Alex Gaston

Brian Paquette

Drew McGukin

“You don’t even realize that you have this perception of Sunbrella in your mind until someone asks you to do something like this and ‘make it cool,’” said McGukin. “You think outdoor, stripes and all of the above. But it was amazing when we really started sourcing the fabrics. The variety and the textures and layers were just really fun to see.”

Kate Jackson

From pastels to neutrals and mid-century modern to everyday eclectic, the vignettes were filled with custom upholstery, original artwork and accessories that communicate each designer’s vision.

Max Humphrey and his mood board, Clint Smith and Brian Patrick Flynn

All of the other submitted designs were on display in the surrounding design gallery; mood boards created by Margaret Donaldson, Allison Hennessy, Ginger Brewton, Kate Gable Seremeth, Kathy Sandler, Max Humphrey and Phillip Sides graced the gallery space walls.

Guests mingling at the High Line Stages

“Perspective New York gives these talented designers the opportunity to let their imaginations run free in creating rooms that no one would say no to,” Wicker said. “How they translated those ideas through the beauty, durability and flexibility of our showroom collection of Sunbrella fabrics is the essence of Perspective."

Newell Turner being interviewed by Sophie Donelson

Stay tuned for EditorTV coverage of this event.

Photo Credit: Andrea Fischman for Editor at Large