Unleash your
creativity
400+ fabric and style combos.
Four-legged-friend approved.
We’ve expanded our made-to-order upholstery options, which means there’s something for everyone—and their dog. To put some of our new design-it-yourself seating to the test, we visited the Manhattan studio of artist William Wegman, whose beloved work often stars his Weimaraners, a charmingly deadpan duo with inarguable canine charisma.
Half-siblings Flo and Topper were born one year apart. Flo (pictured above times two!) is the “rock solid” big sister, while Topper is the “sweet, sweet, sweet” watchdog.
Your Weimaraners have been central to your work for decades. How did that start?
In 1970, we got a Weimaraner puppy, who I named Man Ray. He was glued to me—when I was setting up photo and video shots, he would get in the frame. He was eerily magnetic, amazing actually.
You design it, we create it
Our made-to-order seating now comes in dozens of fabric and color combos, totaling more than 400 possibilities. (We counted.) Performance options stand up to wear and tear from kids and pets, meaning there’s a fabric to fit every lifestyle.
Why do you think your work resonates so much?
I put a lot of energy and thought into what goes on in the frame.
What inspires you?
Almost all my ideas come to me on the spot, in the moment. As a visual artist, I’m always on the lookout.
“It’s an interesting challenge to find new ways for the dogs to interact with furniture and props.”
How did dogs-on-furniture become a thing?
Weimaraners are working dogs; they crave it. They also love being up—on a couch, chair, bed, anything. When I photograph [Flo and Topper], I raise them to lens level—my eye level—to keep them in place and let them know we’re working. Plus, their gray coats look great on everything!
What’s next for you three?
A show of my work called “Being Human” just opened in Seoul. We take a break in the summer but soon will be doing a high-fashion shoot on a lake, in the woods, in Maine.
Photo by Kimberly M. Wang
More about Bill
Since the early ’70s, Bill’s artwork has appeared in museums and galleries worldwide—from The Whitney to the Centre Pompidou and beyond. His first pup Man Ray was central to his early work, even named “Man of the Year” by New York City’s Village Voice when he passed in 1982. That fruitful partnership gave way to future generations of Weimaraner collaborations, featured in children’s books, retrospectives and more.
Today, Bill splits time between New York and Maine, where he paints, draws, makes videos and, of course, continues to photograph Flo and Topper.