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Until I graduated from college, I was always making something. Drawing, painting, potting as a child, then drafting and model-making as a would-be architect. I miss it, but I have had a hard time settling on a craft as an adult. Usually cooking gives me some of the same feeling, especially when I get creative, as with my Monday triumph: Corn/Cabbage/Kidney Bean Salad, with a lime vinagrette.

Last week I executed an idea I had while browsing the out-of-date art supplies in my grandfather’s studio this summer. (I am still figuring out a project for the envelopes of press type.)

I found a package of vintage paper EAT placemats. I thought they would make a good wall covering for our open dining area but needed a little something more. I took colored Letraset film (also scavenged in the studio) and let the colors suggest various fruits and vegetables. I cut out the simplest shape I thought would be identifiable for each type.

I thought the results were pretty great, and the kids design website Ohdeedoh agreed, and featured my Fruit and Vegetable Wall Graphics on Wednesday.

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By Alexandra Lange

Alexandra Lange is an architecture critic and author, and the 2025 Pulitzer Prize winner for Criticism, awarded for her work as a contributing writer for Bloomberg CityLab. She is currently the architecture critic for Curbed and has written extensively for Design Observer, Architect, New York Magazine, and The New York Times. Lange holds a PhD in 20th-century architecture history from New York University. Her writing often explores the intersection of architecture, urban planning, and design, with a focus on how the built environment shapes everyday life. She is also a recipient of the Steven Heller Prize for Cultural Commentary from AIGA, an honor she shares with Design Observer’s Editor-in-Chief, Ellen McGirt.