ABOUT US
KISMET AND MAGIC START THE STORY
The felicitous 1985 first encounter of theatrical scenic artists Cliff Schorr and Donald Southern on the New York City set of the film “F/X”. On that day, Cliff was following through on his most recent flash of creative inspiration and shared with Donald the initial experimental hand-painted textile wall coverings that would eventually be named “Sfumatura” in homage to Leonardo da Vinci, the Italian polymath, and what he was doing in fifteenth-century Florence.
Donald was suitably impressed with both Cliff’s invention and its beautiful result, realizing instantaneously that he was witnessing the creation of a new category of decorative wall coverings—a new category of “wall art”, one-of-a-kind richly-colored contemporary interpretations of ancient Venetian, Roman, and Pompeiian walls that can transport the viewer variously to an Old World Mediterranean setting or an exclusive club scene in New York City or Los Angeles.
This fateful moment marked the birth of Messrs. Schorr and Southern’s bespoke hand-painted textile wall coverings— the tactile, luminous, richly-colored high-end wall coverings that East Coast design professionals and Hollywood celebrities have installed in their distinguished residential and commercial properties throughout the US and Mexico for more than 25 years.
REVERANCE, INSPIRATION, AND LEGACY CONTINUE THE STORY
Like all artisan products, the beauty of having something handmade, personal, and with a unique story is alluring, valuable, personal, and coveted. Cliff Schorr, the Creative Director of Sfumatura knew he wanted to find a way to offer his work to a wider group of people. In 2017, he started working with our friend, Lisa Hendrickson, to experiment with digitizing Sfumatura. After much experimentation, the team has had a breakthrough in taking our beautiful handmade Sfumatura and bringing it into the digital age.
Tragically, Cliff Schorr didn't have a chance to see this new Sfumatura family of products. He passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. This Sfumatura represents the legacy of Cliff Schorr while acknowledging the future of our products.
THE FUTURE IS NOW FOR SFUMATURA
All of the love and personal artistry that Cliff poured into his original Sfumatura is in this collection of the Sfumatura Home Assessories. Our beautiful Sfumatura now can be your beautiful Sfumatura.
Cliff Schorr wanted each of his patrons to "walk in beauty." The team at Sfumatura today wishes you the same.
WALK IN BEAUTY
