Wallpaper studio sends art around the world

The company produces wall art for large businesses and residential areas. Every employee is an artist at whose work is seen by people all over the world.

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Story by Fiona Curran / The Hubbard School  /  SUMMER 2023

Inside an unassuming, two-story concrete Prospect Park building framed by tall trees, Skip Wilson and other artists design, produce and distribute work seen by people around the world. But few passersby would know this from the building alone – even with its strange horizontal blue stripe.

“A lot of people say ‘Is this a Mexican restaurant?’ because our building is painted so weird.” Wilson said. “It’s not your average printing company.”

Oliver Evans said he was surprised when he arrived at the building for a job interview as a pre-press designer for Area Environments in 2018.

“I‘ve walked past this a thousand times and I never even knew it existed,” Evans said.

Hidden though they may be, Apropos Studio and Area Environments stand out as a nexus of support for creative artists who otherwise might never see their work travel beyond their studios.  

From their location at 1 Malcolm Avenue SE, the two companies founded by Jamie Reich – Apropos  in 1988 and Area Environments in 2014 –  collectively employ 18 artists to create wall art that includes wallpaper, murals, photography backgrounds and design printing on various materials. 

Apropos Studio caters to large businesses and storefronts such as Bath and Body Works, Victoria’s Secret, Pink and Sephora. Area Environments focuses on wall art for residences and hotels.

Wilson, who is the operations manager for Apropos Studio and the production manager for Area Environments, said the companies are unique in that “pretty much every person who works here is an artist.”

Wilson often tells his co-workers to consider how lucky they are. 

“Because otherwise we’re a bunch of outcasts, really,” he said. “We wouldn’t thrive in other workplaces. We all get jobs and we get to be around other creative people.” 

As the owner, Reich has done more than just make sure the artists can work together by structuring Area Environments’ business model to support them directly. 

“We find artists, then we convert their work into wallpaper,” Reich said. “We sell it through showrooms around the United States and now England. With every sale, a percentage goes back to the artist. That’s the model we developed.”

Reich also said Apropos’ success relies on more than just the artistry. One factor, he said, is they can make products quickly. The company has 15 printers that run all day to meet its deadlines. 

Wilson added that the company can also control the quality to meet customer needs, specifically by using software to regulate colors through digital printing.

As a result, the products have seen wide success with exports that carry the wallpaper and wall art to destinations such as South America, Canada, the United Kingdom and, more recently, India. About 15% of their products are sent to international locations.

This year, Reich launched a new company called Area Public, where customers can order wallpaper from artists online and learn about their work as well. The wallpaper is self-adhesive, so customers can easily hang it themselves.

The artists say they are proud of the work they’ve done and that they can share it with people everywhere. 

“When I first started dating my partner,” Wilson said, “we would go to the mall and I would be like, ‘Hey, could we go into Victoria’s Secret? I just need to look at the walls.’ You can walk around and be like, ‘I did that, I did that, I did that, I did that.’”

Reich said he enjoys seeing his work in the homes of Area Environments customers through reviews and pictures from happy customers. 

“You feel this sense of pride, like, ‘I made that! That came from my shop!’ And it’s going all over the world,” Reich said.