Azure: 5 Transformational Surface Materials That Command the Room

No longer content to fade into the background, today’s surfacing materials are stepping into the spotlight. The season’s standout introductions are being asked to do more, transforming simple finishes into dynamic canvases that channel the spirit of faraway landscapes, reimagine timeworn materials and advance sustainability. Below, we’ve rounded up five collections that exemplify how foundational surfaces — from walls to floors and furnishings — can become expressive, high-performance elements that balance material innovation with visual storytelling.

This subtle, poetic wallpaper collection from Calico gets the seal of approval from interior designer Athena Calderone. In fact, she designed Cadence, her debut wallcoverings collection, for her own Tribeca apartment. Inspired by the “subtle beauty of aged materials — particularly the fine, translucent textures found in natural hides,” the collection feels both timeworn and contemporary, embodying her timeless, minimalist style. “Design, for me, is at its most powerful when it acknowledges history while nodding to the future,” notes Calderone. “The silhouettes, materials and gestures of earlier eras offer a language that, when reinterpreted — as with the Cadence wallpaper — becomes the foundation for something entirely new. I love to view the modern world through this nostalgic lens.”

Working closely with a French artisan, Calderone layered hand-painted artwork with hi-res scans of authentic textures to create the final result, which is offered in a range of six earthy colourways: light neutrals like Alabaster, Fawn and Porcelain, as well as richer hues like Jasper, a deep forest green, Oxblood, a deep red, and Tobacco, a warm brown.