Design.

Dark Skies, a modern new series of modular plank, looks to nature and its dramatic and countless abstract configurations as the basis and inspiration for its name.

The collection, created by Mannington’s in-house design studio, was derived from a journey to Northern Michigan to the Headlands International Dark Sky Park near Mackinaw City. In this vast forest spanning 550 acres, the natural darkness is protected from light pollution and creates a sense of infinite depth and protected surroundings. Storms during the trip produced an inky blackness at night and eerie light by day, magnifying the landscape’s shadowy remoteness.

Our designer captured her experience in paintings and sketches, translating them into three styles of modular plank found in Dark Skies, which are aptly named, Coast, Drift and Haze. The designs contemplate the aura of nature and look to the wooded landscapes, sloping hills, snow, water and rocky coastlines as abstract sources of inspiration. The experience of developing Dark Skies led her to explore nature’s dichotomies, expressed in the light and dark of water, land, weather and space. The patterns and colors in the collection reflect the details of these incredible landscapes and seek to evoke fascination with the world around us.

Patterns blend areas of illumination and shadow in expressive brush strokes, with moody, tonal colorways. A study in the artistic sublime, Dark Skies allows designers to build subtle, atmospheric drama into their spaces. Coast is illustrated by vertical lines suggestive of trees and branches, placed with definition and irregularity much like a forest. Drift is characterized by floating natural objects, such as driftwood, stones, moss, found scattered in their original habitat. Haze is defined by the skies above, enveloped in a blanket of dark and the light glow emitted from stars.

Roby Isaac, Vice President of Design, adds “The processes of discovery and ideation are constants for me as a designer. Dark Skies embraces this idea by foregoing what we think we know about nature and seeing its abstractions and imperfections as inspirations.”

Designers will have the option of specifying Dark Skies patterns singularly or in combining patterns to create a varied floor print below. The collection was designed with performance in mind and is suited for myriad commercial environments, including high-traffic workplace, retail, educational, hospitality and other settings.