Inside the Dallas Studio: Creativity Through Reuse

At WATG and Wimberly Interiors, design often reveals itself in highly visible moments: a completed destination, a reimagined guest or resident experience, a place brought into focus. Yet some of the most compelling stories unfold quietly, developed through process, intention, and everyday decisions. One such story now lives on the wall of the Dallas studio. 

While WATG is a global, integrated design firm, each studio applies the firm’s brand identity through a local lens. At the Dallas studio, the interior design is informed by the landscapes, natural materials, and heritage of Texas. That sensibility is evident throughout the space, from the use of leather and wood to conference rooms named after indigenous trees such as Live Oak, Pecan, and Cedar Elm. It was within this framework that Wimberly Interiors explored the curation of a new custom artwork, now displayed in the Cedar Elm conference room. 

When a collection of brochures had run their course, the team paused before defaulting to the recycle bin. Instead, a simple question came to mind: could these materials be transformed into something lasting? 

That question led to a collaboration with Eaton Fine Art, an award-winning art consultancy specializing in hospitality environments. Through Eaton, a regionally based artist known for a collage-based approach transformed the brochures and other printed materials into a custom artwork created specifically for the Dallas studio. The resulting composition is a richly layered work incorporating handmade paper, magazine stock, and acrylic and oil paint. 

Drawing inspiration from the Texas Bald Cypress and Hill Country landscapes, the artwork references natural forms while expressing the creative identity of WATG and Wimberly Interiors. Subtle details are woven throughout the piece, including a horse and rider, the WATG logo, a fox, a deer, and fragments of language extracted from the original brochures. The piece invites close observation, revealing additional discoveries over time while aligning with a broader commitment to responsible and forward-looking design. 

Kathy Chavez, Dallas Studio Director of Wimberly Interiors, worked closely with Eaton Fine Art to craft a color palette that would complement the studio’s interior design while standing confidently as a focal point. The result is a work that invites conversation, not only for its visual presence, but for the story embedded in its making. 

Within interior projects, the Wimberly Interiors team regularly looks for opportunities to specify a line of fabric made from reclaimed ocean plastics, collaborates with manufacturers committed to PVC-free materials, and works with carpet vendors that offer end-of-life recycling programs at no additional cost to clients. These choices may not always be visible, but they influence projects in lasting ways. 

The recycled paper artwork is a single piece created for one room, yet it aligns with a broader mindset at WATG: respect for place and thoughtful decision-making at every scale. In the Dallas studio, that way of thinking is captured on one wall. What began as outdated print materials now becomes a reminder that design value often lies not in what is new, but in how existing resources are reconsidered, reworked, and given renewed purpose.