Design Challenge: Beyoncé - Cowboy Carter
It’s the final week of Women’s History Month as well as the final week of our Sacred and Lit Design Challenge and you already knew we were gonna end with Beyoncé.
Duh.
Maybe you’ve been living under a rock. Or possibly you just got here from Mars. We don’t know. We’re not trying to be in your business like that. But whatever the circumstances may be, if you are one of the very few people on the planet who wasn’t already aware that Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter dropped a new album today… nay… a COUNTRY album today…nay… A Beyoncé album… here’s the album art:
via Beyonce / Instagram
As Beyoncé showcased on Act i Renaissance— with its heavy references to genres of dance music pioneered by Black folks—act ii, Cowboy Carter is a love letter to a genre of music created by Black people in the American South. There’s a bit of something for everyone represented; bluegrass, country-western, honkey tonk, even some zydeco! In honor of this eclectic cowboy hat tip to the past, we wanted to do our own twist on the divine referential by creating a studio space inspired not only by the album but by days of Beyoncé past. We started with the centerpiece of the album art. We’re not actually talking about Beyonce even though yes she is the centerpiece of everything that she does. And of our hearts. We’re talking about the iconic horse.
The thing about Chardonneigh is you bring her inside and she’s kicking all of your stuff over.
We knew we wanted to find a piece of furniture that could act as our anchor for the space. We looked at countless white sofas and we finally landed on this beautiful boucle, leather and velvet fabric that we think mimics not only the coat of the steed but the saddle Beyonce straddles on the cover.
Up next, we wanted to experiment with the vibrant red and blues at play in the original work. A dip-dyed throw blanket made out of alpaca wool in indigo blue brings a pop of color to the seating area while this MoMA exclusive acrylic Two-Way Side Table in cherry red brings an unexpected textural mix into the room.
We added these Senegalese Wanjiru Storage Baskets in blue and white and an art print of “Officer of the Hussars” by Kehinde Wiley to continue the red, white and blue motif.
As referential as Beyonce is in her work, with homages to not only other artists but to her own previous work, we thought it would be great to add similar elements into our choices including this amazing Afro Pick Meedo Bench by artists Jomo Tariku (perfect for baby hairs and afros!) and Black Celestial Diamonds Wallpaper to help you “Find Your Way Back.”
And because we’re not quite over act I Renaissance (shout out to our fellow Inglewood Night 1 fans!) we wanted to add elements that mirrored that experience like this breathtaking mirrored lounge chair from Claude Home.
Here’s our finished project below…
So how’d we do? let us know your thoughts on our room inspired by Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter! Have an idea for a new design challenge or need assistance bringing your own design inspiration to life? Reach out to our team here at sacredandlit@gmail.com.
