An interview with… Michael Berman, Chief Executive Officer, Schoos Design

How and when did you discover the potential of print and the opportunities it can open up in the design environment?

We first used large format print in 2010 for the design of a restaurant in Napa Valley, CA when we were faced with the challenge of creating a venue that stood out. My business partner, Thomas Schoos, had the idea to put a 20-foot photo of fresh fish on the wall leading to the dining room. It took us a week to establish all the technical requirements and find a print company that could accommodate this. In the end, we called on a print service provider that printed custom wallpaper on durable material. In a city where most fine restaurants are neoclassic, we created a modern venue and used two large wall murals to soften the ambiance. Personalized wallpaper has become a popular application but at the time it was almost revolutionary.

In your opinion, what are the most valuable advantages of digital print?

Digital print is an efficient and easy way to translate creativity into unique projects. It allows us to develop exclusive areas and personalize venues such as hotels and restaurants.Whether we have to create a custom mural, wallpaper or window transparency, we use digital printing for both artistic and practical applications. For a restaurant with floor to ceiling windows in the lounge area, we created custom printed transparencies of vintage photos and applied it to the windows. This gave us the opportunity to create a unique look and at the same time achieve a practical objective of blocking the sun.

Michael Berman will be speaking at the Printeriors conference on Thursday, 21^st May at 3.30 pm about how to exploit print in interior design. Michael will showcase how he has worked with print and how he sees it as an important tool for design.