Arte transports us to Babylon

The world’s first big city, Babylon, formed part of Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilisation and the inspiration for the collection from Arte of the same name. This is the birthplace of arable and livestock farming, astronomy, mathematics and writing, to name just a few. Cuneiform script was created by people carving and drawing in clay tablets and rock walls, and it is this technique of sculpting in clay that serves as inspiration for the Babylon collection. You could easily call the designs works of art, featuring large clay tablets that are shaped by hand with extreme precision and then translated into incredibly detailed creations that resemble plasterwork.

Image credit: Arte

The combination of different light panels in tile form creates both a geometric and an earthy pattern in the Terracotta design. Thanks to the pronounced relief of the engravings, it is reminiscent of decorative earthenware or ripples in sand.

The tile-shaped design of Mejdoul has a great deal of relief, due to the technique used and the voluminous material. The pattern is inspired by date palms, a common plant in the Middle East.  The Adobe wallcovering plays with various kinds of relief, both in height and depth. The irregular squares and triangles create a playful, geometric and intriguing effect. The design refers to unbaked clay tablets (adobe) that are dried in the sun.

Image credit: Arte

Between Rivers is the signature design of this collection. This mythical scene is set in the lush nature of Babylonia between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the region where arable and livestock farming originated. The imaginative tableau shows elephants, gazelles, date palms and the remains of ancient temples.

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Main image credit: Arte