If walls could talk, then those swathed in de Gournay’s magnificent bespoke hand-painted wallpapers must surely reveal the best stories.” Fiona Mccarthy – WISH Magazine, the Australian November 2020.

Published by Rizzoli late last year, ‘de Gournay – Hand Painted Interiors’ was special not only for being the first book on our company but also for offering a unique form of escapism in the face of unprecedented events caused by the Coronavirus pandemic worldwide.

Written by our founder Claud himself, the book was envisioned as both a dazzling celebration of his family run business, founded in 1984, and an insight into its origins – Examining questions of décor via engaging interludes upon Eastern mysticism, the natural world and his own life – and reflecting throughout on the meaning and delights of artistic creation.    

Exploring its development from cult niche to established industry leaders in the creation of the world’s finest hand painted wallpapers, the book brings together imagery of some of the greatest installations of our designs ever undertaken. A curated journey though projects from across the globe, executed by the leading arbiters of interior design: from the exuberant flair of Miles Redd & David Kaihoi in New York and the nuanced elegance of India Mahdavi in Paris, to the pristine modernism of Kelly Wearstler’s West Coast aesthetic and the contemporary polish of Martin Brudzinski in London.

“In this sumptuous celebration of the company that has since spread its wings across the globe, with showrooms from Beirut to San Francisco, Cecil Gurney defines de Gournay’s mission as ‘rais[ing] the spirits of our clients and infus[ing] their rooms with happiness and ambience’. Doubtless, any number of interior designers would rationalise their raison d’être thus.” – Matthew Dennison, The World of Interiors March 2021