# Wallpaper (magazine)

Wallpaper, stylized Wallpaper*, is a publication focusing on design and architecture, fashion, travel, art, and lifestyle. The magazine was launched in London in 1996 by Canadian journalist Tyler Brûlé and Austrian journalist Alexander Geringer. It is now owned by Future plc after its acquisition of TI Media.

## History

Brûlé sold the magazine to Time Warner in 1997 and stayed on as editorial director until 2002, when he was replaced by Jeremy Langmead. In 2003 Langmead appointed Tony Chambers as Creative Director. Chambers, a self-styled "visual journalist", replaced Langmead as editor-in-chief in April 2007. In September 2017, Chambers was succeeded by the publication's creative director, Sarah Douglas. Douglas had worked at the magazine for over a decade, joining as Art Editor in 2007 before being appointed to Creative Director in 2012. Chambers, in turn, took on the role of Wallpaper* brand and content director. In 2023, Bill Prince was appointed editor-in-chief.
Apart from publishing the monthly magazine and website, under the banner of its Bespoke business, Wallpaper* also creates content, curates exhibitions and designs events for third party clients. Wallpaper* published over 100 travel city guide books in partnership with Phaidon Press.
Since 2015, Wallpaper* has offered an e-commerce platform, the WallpaperSTORE*, offering the opportunity to purchase a carefully curated selection of the products seen on the pages of the magazine.
Wallpaper.com covers breaking news across design, interior, art, architecture, fashion, travel, beauty, wellness and technology. It also publishes exclusive online features, interviews, galleries and a daily newsletter. According to the magazine's media pack, the website has on average over 1,700,000 unique users per month.
In 2007, to celebrate its 100th issue and reflect its multi-platform status, the logo's asterisk acquired a cursor in place of one of its arms. From 2007, the magazine invited selected guest editors from the world of art, design, architecture, and fashion to edit its October issue. Guest editors have included Jeff Koons (2007), Zaha Hadid (2008), Karl Lagerfeld (2009), David Lynch (2010), Kraftwerk (2011), Ole Scheeren (2012), Elmgreen & Dragset (2013), Frank Gehry (2014), William Wegman (2015), Jenny Holzer (2019), Giorgio Armani (2022) and Yayoi Kusama (2023).
In August 2008, Wallpaper launched the Wallpaper* Selects website in collaboration with contemporary online art retailer Eyestorm. Wallpaper Selects sells a selection of limited-edition photographs from the Wallpaper archive, signed by the photographer.
In July 2011, the magazine launched an iPad edition. In October 2015, Wallpaper celebrated its 200th issue since starting its print edition in 1996. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the monthly magazine was made available as a free digital download.
The annual Wallpaper* Design Awards were launched in January 2005. From 2009, Wallpaper* released four annual special editions focused on the creative culture of the BRIC nations, 'Made in China' (June 2009), 'Born in Brazil' (June 2010), 'Reborn in India' (June 2011) and 'Reigning in Russia' (November 2012). In 2017, Wallpaper* launched a Chinese-language edition of the magazine, published by Huasheng Media.
From 2010 to 2019, the Wallpaper* Handmade exhibition was held annually at the Milan Salone del Mobile, ushering in an era of collaboration between the magazine's editorial team, established manufacturers and emerging designers across a number of fields.
In 2024, Wallpaper* partnered with Rolex to publish the official history of the Rolex Submariner, the first in an ongoing series of specialist publications about the watchmaker's iconic models.

## Controversies

In September 2005, the magazine published an article about the Afrikaans Language Monument by Bronwyn Davies, an English-speaking South African, that described Afrikaans as "one of the world's ugliest languages." South African billionaire Johann Rupert (chairman of the Richemont Group), responded by withdrawing advertising for all Richemont Group brands, such as Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Montblanc and Alfred Dunhill, from the magazine.