IN ATLANTA’S BUSY WESTSIDE MARKET, DEBBY GOMULKA IS PREPARING TO RELAUNCH her Marrakesh textile collection. It’s a venture 15 years in the making that began with a single preservation project and her father’s prescient advice.
“Fifteen years ago, I was looking for a mill that would mass-produce my designs. I wanted to create it on my own, rather than licensing a big manufacturer, like others do,” explains Gomulka, founder of Provenance Lee Interiors. “My father said, ‘There are so many old, abandoned textile mills in the Carolinas. I bet you could find one,’ and I finally found one in South Carolina.”
The new Atlanta showroom represents both a homecoming and an expansion for Gomulka, whose design work has increasingly extended beyond her Charleston base to include several projects in Atlanta, Highlands and Cashiers, North Carolina. “When I was growing up, we had a house in the North Carolina mountains,” she recalls. “I love designing for those areas. The mountains and coastal areas connected to historic districts are in my DNA. My history is related back to the architecture, landscape and history of a place.”
The textile collection’s origin story reads like a preservation fairy tale. Gomulka was working on a challenging restoration project in a historic town that had fallen on hard times. “When the railroad moved out, the wealth left. All the original merchants had gone, and nobody could afford a 10,000-square-foot Italianate mansion anymore. But the clients saw the house from the street and fell in love,” she explains.
The project presented significant challenges. “When we landed on the job, it was in such disrepair. The structure was literally falling into the cistern,” she recalls. After addressing the structural and architectural restoration, Gomulka worked with the client on furnishings for the grand home.
The client, a well-traveled collector with a house full of antiques, brought a pivotal element to one of their design meetings: a small book titled Marrakesh. She wanted certain rooms to capture that exotic, richly layered aesthetic. Gomulka contacted one of her national sources in Boston, who specializes in plaster and marble walls and was able to connect Gomulka with an artist in Manhattan who uses an ancient European technique that brought Gomulka’s vision to life—an exquisite Moroccan canvas of ancient walls that have been there for centuries.
The collaborative process of developing the Marrakesh-inspired color palette and design scheme became transformative for Gomulka. “Provenance means the beginning of something, so that textile came from my own design,” she says. The experience inspired her to partner with the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University to create her inaugural textile collection.
The Atlanta expansion reflects Gomulka’s understanding of regional design connections. Her background in historic preservation, developed through 25 years of work in historic districts across the South, translates naturally to Atlanta’s rich architectural heritage and the mountain communities of North Carolina.
Gomulka’s approach to both interior design and textile creation stems from her commitment to understanding personal narratives. “For example, if a client has traveled to Italy and has a love of the Renaissance, I’ll discover that in the interview process,” she says. “As we’re walking through their house, and I’m learning about it, I’ll look at their artifacts, accessories and objects and get curious. That’s when the stories come out.”
This storytelling philosophy extends to her textile work. Just as the Marrakesh collection emerged from listening to a client’s travel memories and desires, the designer is adept in translating stories into tangible design elements. Her background, a degree in interior design with a minor in art history, plus early exposure to the fashion industry, provides the technical foundation for her narrative-driven approach.
“Having studied art history extensively in college and beyond provides the essence of my designs and a focal point of my work, whether it’s incorporating fine art or artisanal techniques,” she explains. Her fashion background appears not only in the textile line but also in the events associated with her brand.
Gomulka applies the same storytelling principles to every job, including contemporary work. A recent beach house project illustrates this approach. The home began as a clean, all-white space, but the client’s passions for music and sport fishing inspired a more personalized design. Rather than following predictable coastal themes, Gomulka focused on materials and textures that convey permanence and depth.
In the music room, the designer created a display featuring archival photographs of the Rolling Stones, sourced from London vendors, alongside images of the client’s 13 favorite artists, each custom-framed in different styles. A copper sailfish sculpture, created by a commissioned artist, reflects the client’s fishing interests while serving as a focal point.
“With a historic preservation background, people wonder how I do contemporary coastal houses, but if you go to the Hamptons, Palm Beach, Cape Cod or Newport, there’s a lot of historic architecture,” she explains. “We don’t do nautical themes; it’s more about using materials that look like the architecture has been there for a long time, honoring its native geographical culture, landscape style and place.” This philosophy applies equally to her textile choices, which emphasize texture and visual depth over trendy patterns.
For Gomulka, the textile collection represents a broader philosophy about contemporary luxury. “The definition of luxury is overused,” she observes. “The true definition is having an intimate experience with quality and time.” Her clients, typically busy professionals and active philanthropists, hire her to create experiences rather than simply decorated spaces. “I interview them to find out what describes their journey, and I peel it away one layer at a time,” she explains. “I use art, furnishings, architecture, paint color, window treatments and table settings to create the Provenance experience and interior spaces that recall their history and what they love.”
Gomulka is a lifelong philanthropist herself and is actively involved in organizations that align with her professional values. Currently, she’s working to establish her own nonprofit organization in honor of her parents and their legacy.
Speaking of values, the partnership with a South Carolina textile mill reflects Gomulka’s commitment to regional craftsmanship, a value she developed through her work with local artisans. “My favorite part of a project is when the artisans can show off their craft,” she says.
This collaborative spirit extends to the textile business, where working with a regional mill supports traditional industries while creating contemporary products. The choice to manufacture locally rather than license designs to larger manufacturers aligns with her broader philosophy of authenticity and personal connection.
As the Atlanta showroom prepares to open, Gomulka continues to balance her historic preservation work in Charleston with expanding opportunities in Georgia and North Carolina. The textile collection serves both markets, offering design professionals and clients fabrics that honor traditional craftsmanship while meeting contemporary needs.
After 25 years in business, Gomulka has developed a practice that demonstrates how regional connections, historical understanding and personal storytelling can create meaningful design experiences. Whether working on an 1860s mansion or developing textiles, her approach remains consistent: understand the context, listen to the client’s story and create products that reflect both cultural integrity and personal meaning. *
Robin Howard is a freelance writer in Charleston. See more of her work at robinhowardwrites.com.
