Walls that talk

Robin Sprong Wallpaper wants to plaster your walls in pattern. Here are three recent collaborations with locally based designers.
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Atang Tshikare wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
After meeting in late 2013, Robin Sprong and Atang Tshikare decided to collaborate on a collection of wallpaper designs. Tshikare's graphic street style lends itself perfectly to creating a repeatable pattern. Seen here is his "Construct" pattern.
Atang Tshikare wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
Tshikare, at work here, has applied his illustrations to all manner of surfaces, including bicycles, sneakers, coffee tables and benches. Sprong generally chooses to work with local designers as most of his clients are from South Africa and relate better to designs that originate here, he says. "South Africans are familiar with these artists and their work sells well," he says.
Atang Tshikare wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
Tshikare's collection features four designs in a range of colour ways. Seen here is "Induna".
Tiphaine Alston wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
"Cape Dutch Contrasts" is the second collection of wallpapers that British textile designer Tiphaine Alston has worked on with Sprong. A graduate of the Royal College of Art, she splits her time between London and Cape Town.
Tiphaine Alston wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper. Image: Mark Williams.
For the "Cape Dutch Contrasts" collection, Alston was inspired by the Cape Dutch architecture and landscape in and around the town of Franschhoek.
Tiphaine Alston wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper. Image: Mark Williams.
"The contrast between the landscape of rippling mountains and neat vineyards against whitewashed structures with their ornamental gables provides a wealth of inspiration," says Alston.
Tiphaine Alston wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
Alston's designs derive from the patterns and textures she found in Franschhoek, as well as the carved doors, thatched roofs and gardens.
Skinny laMinx wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
Local textile designer Heather Moore of Skinny laMinx turned to Sprong to translate her already popular fabric designs into wallpaper. Shown here is the graphic pattern "Woodpile".
Skinny laMinx wallpaper for Robin Sprong Wallpaper.
Skinny la Minx selected a range of its designs that would work best on wallpaper, including the "Orla" leaf pattern shown here. The Cape Town-based textile label's collection translates with ease from fabric to wallpaper.
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Robin Sprong Wallpaper
Robin Sprong Wallpaper is a Cape Town-based wallpaper company that has recently expanded internationally.
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Cape Town-based Robin Sprong was working as a professional photographer when he stumbled onto the idea of producing wallpaper while searching for a cheap way to print images en masse.

"At that time I met a man with a large-format digital printer and he allowed me to come in to his workshop and start experimenting on his various machines," Sprong says. "I printed vinyl and wallpaper on a machine called a Grand-Jet, used to print huge truck canvases. The Grand-Jet had such a heavy grain that it was more like art than print. It was all about learning what the different machines could do and what they could cope with." 

And so began Robin Sprong Wallpaper, a surface design company that can create almost any kind of imagery for interiors.

Sprong now represents over 40 different artists, illustrators and designers, whose work he translates into wall coverings. It's like living inside an exquisitely wrapped present, turned inside-out. "With digital print, traditional wallpaper is totally off the wall!" he says. "We can now do whatever we want, from blowing up a photograph super-size to illustration to graphics to patterns." 
 
As wallpaper's appeal widens and the range of products improves, Sprong has developed his offerings – he recently started using a new type of pre-gummed wallpaper that is PVC free, 100% recyclable and printed with non-toxic latex inks. 
 
Beyond the collections that he develops with designers, he also does custom design jobs in collaboration with designers. "It gets really interesting working with the diversity of talent we have in this country. Often our studio is buzzing with designers, artists and clients all at the same time," he says. 
 
Flip through our Lookbook above to see three newly released collections by Atang Tshikare, Skinny laMinx and Tiphiane Alston.