Erik Lindström’s Stylish New Rug Gallery Channels Milanese Brutalism
Designed with architect Luis Fernandez, the newly unveiled Los Angeles showroom layers vintage 1970s furnishings, moody hues, and a decadent listening room to present his artisan-crafted rugs as works of art
Erik Lindström has long infused his showrooms with a spirit of domestic ease, staging his rugs alongside vintage furnishings of notable provenance in compositions that elevate them to the level of fine art. That same approach informs his latest venture, a 6,000-square-foot showroom on Highland Avenue in Los Angeles, housed within the former Tanya Bonakdar Gallery. This time, however, the rug designer and entrepreneur looked beyond the language of the home and drew from the refined sensibilities of Milanese Brutalism, a direction that crystallized after a chance meeting with architect Luis Fernandez during a talk at Blackman Cruz. “We both hit it off,” Lindström recalls, noting their early conversations about architectural theories, materiality, color, and a shared appreciation for 1970s-era furniture.
When early ideation began, they jettisoned conventional showroom tropes and reworked the former white-cube gallery’s generous volumes with saturated hues and louche furnishings arranged in domestic vignettes that heighten the presence of Lindström’s rugs. The midcentury lineage of Los Angeles aligned naturally with the stylish strain of Milanese modernism that dominated the duo’s moodboard, while existing skylights and discreet plantings temper its darker registers. “We agreed immediately that this needed to feel different, more of a gallery with a residential warmth,” explains Fernandez. “The idea was to display rugs the way they’re meant to be appreciated in a home: amongst art, furniture, and collectibles.”
And there’s a wealth to be found in the showroom, which marries Lindström’s robust array of artisan-crafted rugs with vintage 1970s furnishings and his personal art collection in debonair vignettes whose visual punch lands how a sbagliato tastes. It’s easy to imagine the circular motifs of the designer’s Disco rug as strobes glinting off the mirrored surface of a semicircular burlwood executive desk by Leon Rosen resting atop—or lending sheen to the mottled wall panels finished in a seductive burnished espresso. In a nearby arcade, a curved Bernhardt sofa upholstered in nubby Clarence House fabric anchors an arcade-like procession or amber-hued rugs hanging tapestry-like within shadowed recesses, each framed by the architecture.
They lend texture to walls outfitted with colorful works by Loic Devaux, Alex Katz, and William Ingham. “Erik already had an extraordinary collection,” raves Fernandez, who aligned and oriented the sequence of rooms to amplify a sense of discovery as each space opens into the next. A cantilevered chair by Milo Baughman, a sinuous loveseat by Afra and Tobia Scarpa, and a Keith Haring painting appear with careful placement. “I’ve always been drawn to the geometry and palette of Erik’s collection, so it was a natural fit to let that sensibility permeate both the architecture and the objects within it. The rugs were part of the visual language from the start.”
By creating a transportive environment that feels home-like in spirit, Lindström intends for clients to imagine his rugs within their own interiors. “Ultimately, the experience should leave clients feeling refreshed, creatively energized, and connected—not just to the products, but to the atmosphere, the ideas, and the creative inspiration our space fosters,” he elaborates. Personal touches reinforce that approach, including his own inkblot paintings that inspired a previous collection and a sculptural wooden chair defined by softened edges and interlocking planes designed by his father, modernist architect Richard Lindström.
Another is through experiences that simply can’t be recreated elsewhere. At the end of the arcade, an intimate listening room envelops visitors in silk shag and velvet-lined oxblood, a cocoon-like retreat with the decadent panache of a speakeasy. “I wanted to illustrate how a hand-knotted, wall-to-wall rug can shape a space into something immersive and intentional,” says Lindström, who outfitted the negroni-hued chamber with a playful canvas by Abbott Meader and a lustrous chandelier by Gino Paroldo. “Music is a universal language, and putting on a record naturally slows the rhythm—it encourages presence, deeper listening, and a more meaningful connection to both the space and the community.”
Ultimately, community remains central to Lindström’s vision. The gallery sits along a stretch of Highland Avenue within walking distance of design mainstays Ralph Pucci, Apparatus, BDDW, JF Chen, Carpenters Workshop Gallery, Holly Hunt, and Blackman Cruz. “It felt like a natural fit,” he says. “Plus, clients love to triangulate, and it’s a pure luxury to park and walk to a variety of like-minded brands who all share a unique, yet common language in home furnishings. There’s a very community-driven atmosphere here, where camaraderie is prevalent, and competition doesn’t seem to exist.” Sounds like great company.