At the Sir John Soane’s Museum in London Lincoln’s Inn Fields there’s a lovely exhibition of the work of Mrs Delany, née Mary Granville.
Born in 1700, in the days when embroidery and art showing pretty flowers was considered charming but not taken seriously because being female then, creating such things was regarded as a hobby. However, Mrs Delany’s is a considerable body of work in its own right, combining such a high level of skills, dedication and passion. Working at least 100 years before Marianne North of Kew Gardens fame, during her lifetime Mrs Delany built up a strong relationship with Kew Gardens who gave her plant specimens.
She started off with embroidery and sketching and then at the age of 72, she began her remarkable series of 1000 flower collages, Flora Delanica, now owned by the British Museum.
Portlandia Grandiflora, © The Trustees of the British Museum
She managed to get hold of glossy black and vibrantly coloured papers to make collages which, looking at them now, feel current, appealing and never twee.
I found it quite up lifting to see a woman’s work from this era held up in such high esteem and not just considered something to pass the time. She went about her work in a very methodical manner, organising her household to store the materials she would use to make her collages and embroideries. The collection of her sketchbooks depicting gardens scenes and delicate graphite fauna left me scraping my jaw off the floor! Through her visual style, techniques and by proving that a woman could be considered a serious artist, in many ways Mrs Delany was way ahead of her time.
Everybody should go to see this exhibition it’s free and at the wonderful Sir John Soane Museum where one should never need an excuse to visit the fantastic yellow room!
‘Mrs Delany’ and Her Circle is on until 1st May.
Continuing my cultural whirlwind, I went to see Chris Ofili’s exhibition at Tate Britain. One of the most acclaimed British painters of his generation, Ofili won the Turner Prize in 1998 and was also chosen to represent Great Britain at the 50th Venice Biennale in 2003. The current exhibition is a major survey of his work, gathering together his intensely coloured and intricately ornamented paintings with pencil drawings and watercolours from the mid 1990s to today.
For me it was The Upper Room that took my breath away, even though I have seen it before it still captures my gaze and transports me into a blaze of colour and pattern, I love David Adjaye’s wooden room installation it really makes it feel very organic and smells wonderful too. I also loved the line drawings and how your focus is drawn to the dots or circles that seemed to have little faces and Afro heads in them. His latest series of paintings are much less decorative and have a magical and spiritual feel.
Here are a few quotations from reviews of the exhibition to whet your appetite before you go:
‘Hip, cool and wildly inventive’ – The Guardian
‘You can’t fail to be entertained’ – The Times
‘Modern Master of radiant colour’ – Daily Telegraph
Think that sums it up!
The exhibition is on until 16th May.
Wallpaper, Art and Culture. 6th February – 3rd May 2010
Popped up to Manchester for the ‘Walls are Talking’ private view at the Whitworth Art Gallery. Outside of London, it has the UK’s largest collection of wallpapers and as it’s the first exhibition to bring together artists’ working with wallpaper, it’s definitely worth seeing.
As I am a huge fan of Thomas Demand it was great to have another chance to see his Ivy wallpaper hung in a vast space, although it did seem to be have little less impact than it had had at the Serpentine in 2006. I wondered if this was partly down to the enormous height of the Whitworth’s ceilings and also due to not including those large photographs that it was shown with at the Serpentine space, which made the room of ivy look like it had windows. What unnerves about this paper is the sense of being confined and constricted by the dense ivy, which is perhaps how it was supposed to make you feel. The feeling is strengthened knowing that Demand’s inspiration for the ivy pattern came from a series of photographs of a tavern; a site that had been the scene for a horrific child murder, killed by its mother and step- sister.
Inspiration for the Ivy wallpaper:
Thomas Demand, Klause - Tavern, © Thomas Demand-DACS
Another gruesome murder scene is enacted in Abigail Lane’s ‘Bloody Wallpaper’ where bloodstain hand prints of the murder victim on a plain cream background are on show. But on a lighter note! I also liked Catherine Bertola’s 3D-esque installations, they reminded me of Katsuyo Kamo’s paper cut outs for Chanel. She used soot from her fire to print or stamp the floral images, which were then cut out with some floating down the walls, very Alice in wonderland !
Catherine Bertola, Whitworth Walls Are Talking 2010
Her work was perhaps (for me) the most inspiring for pushing the boundaries and for leaving you with some kind of emotional sense. By using paper in a different way than just the flat she leads nicely towards Tracy Kendal’s work. I did wonder why she (Tracy) wasn’t included in this section as her work is a fine example of 3D art wallpaper and crosses the boundaries of art and designer very nicely. And there were other surprising omissions not just individuals but a whole era.
I know this exhibition focuses mainly on the 1970s onwards but it did seem a shame that there wasn’t a reference to the 40’s – 50’s period. For example the Coles and Sons wallpapers by leading artists such as Graham Sutherland, John Aldridge and Edward Bawden and Bowden’s again a little earlier for the Curwen Press. I had always thought that this was quite a good time for the cross over of artists working in wallpaper and of course more predominantly fabrics.
What ‘Walls are Talking’ says is that wallpaper isn’t just decorative but can be a medium for social commentary. It certainly is a thought-provoking exhibition, exploring themes of sexuality gender, race, war, outside in, chemical warfare, politics to mention a few with artists such as Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, Michael Craig-Martin and Angus Fairhurst using wallpaper to make bold artistic statements. Sarah Lucas’ ‘Tits in Space’ always makes me smile with its cigarettes neatly arranged into compact, pert cones!
Tits in Space © Sarah Lucas, Courtesy of Sadie Coles HQ, London
This is definitely a thought provoking exhibition and very enjoyable, there were some pieces that were more pictures rather than wallpaper; especially the ones that were canvas stretched over frames, perhaps these could have been bigger pieces so that the effect could have been felt more. But that is what opens up the discussions on ‘when does a wallpaper become a work of art?’ The majority of the papers on show weren’t made for residential use making it a very interesting take on the wallpaper today issues.
What I love about going to Premier Vision is that not only is it a great opportunity to peer ahead, check out trends and see cutting edge technologies that are the results of years of R&D but you get to pick up stuff (literally and mentally) that you might not normally find or have easy access to. Here’s a good example, it’s a beautifully produced colour journal called ‘Le fil du lin & du chanvre’ which gives an overview of how linen and hemp are being used across the board in design.
Le fil du lin & du chanvre, n°03
I also found ‘Geometric’, a brilliant book by Kapitza – a design studio up the road from here set up by 2 sisters. It’s great fun, loaded with 100 pattern fonts (shapes based on the forms of letters in the alphabet) and something I’m definitely looking forward to playing with. Some of the patterns reminded me of the Dutch artist and designer Karel Martens who is a favourite of mine. You can buy the book from the Kapitza online shop:
One last notable mention from Premier Vision: Jakob Schlaepfer’s brand new, awe-inspiring fabric ‘Secret Garden’, a shimmering silver gossamer with iridescent inks printed onto it. It’s one of those fabrics that photographs really don’t do justice to, you have to see it up close and feel it yourself. So, lucky me! Look out for this in the coming years time in clothing and interiors.
Premiere Vision Feb 2010
Colours
As always there was an abundance of poetical verse to describe the trends and colours for S/S 2011 at PV and Indigo this week ‘colourful jellies’ ‘satirical pastels’, ‘languorous tone on tones’, ‘ limpid sea waters’, ‘ fresh skin tones’, ‘brilliant monochromes’ ‘mysterious abyss’ and ‘synthetic lights’ to mention but a few!
For me this year the colours that tooted my bells were a small selection in contrast with the huge palette available on the fashion agenda. I will try and match some to pantone references and some to our wallpapers, some may vary from the actual as I’m matching them with own ‘my’ eye chart!
Blues and greens fitted into the Aquatic and Limpid seawater themes ranging from the stronger turquoise to pale transient blues.
Turquoise
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Leaf Turquoise Gold
Pantone 15-4715 to a darker Pantone 16-5123
Soft paler blues
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Treetops Sky Blue
Pantone 14-4307 and very pale Pantone 12-4304
I would also include in the blue theme the strong trend for blue ink tones and washes starting from ink black / navy to very pale light blue. ‘Luminous darkness’ included Navy, khakis and pale aquas.
There were a lot of greens, khakis, dark greens, brights to pastel creamy greens. Pantone 17-0525, 15-0522, 14-6316
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper Cascade, Willow
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Leaf Green Gloss
A riot of oranges, reds and pinks from luminous pastel orange Pantone 12-0714, 12-1009,to dusty pinks 13-1409 12-1305
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Blossom Soft Rose
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Flora Blush
Mix pale violets with the orange violet 13-3803, 15-1905 with the orange tones 14-1311, 13-1019 and khaki with this orange
Putty tones
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Fern Putty
Raspberry reds, mulberry deep pinks .
Skin tones to camel and fauna Pantone 12-1005, 14-1210, 13-1013 , 15-1308, 15-1309.
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Fern Mouse
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Fern Chalk
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Cascade Sand
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Cascade Linen
Bronzed browns to muted gold’s
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Blossom Renaissance Gold
Mysterious abyss – Very dark mat grounds juxtaposed with shiny gloss inks , dark browns with black, black on black
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Kew Black Gloss
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Leaf Black Gloss
Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Leaf Black Gold
There was also a very bright theme ‘Aspirin ‘ think polka dots, Op Art Damien Hurst dots, very, very bright brightest, orange, greens, pinks, blue.
Print themes saw again a strong nature theme of ‘floral opulence’.
In the theme ‘Today’s Yesteryear’ fabrics had a soft feel to them ‘tenderly washed’, pictorial silks with sandstone finishes, nostalgic influence. 1950’s screen-printed fabrics with a hand painterly feel, textured brush strokes and ink washes, ink jet prints with magnified water marks, a break away from the exactness of photographic prints.
Artificial nature – a ‘wonderland’ of fauna, dragonflies, grasshoppers, water lilies.
Another print theme was the very light, transparency skeletal fragile forms plants, birds, insects – fine line drawings, mono prints, semi transparent architectural scenes / structures. Exact drawn pencil lines mixed with haphazardly ink.
Tropical theme included parrots and birds, exotic flowers magnified and scaled with fruits and lush jungle looking leaves. Think Henri Rousseau and his treatment of leaves, oil pastels, paint and collage.
Indigo seems to see an increasing amount of textile designers offering vintage collections, antique, contemporary swatches, clothes and accessories mixed with the current fashion trends. Some of the prints and dresses are quite stunning, items that you would not be able to get from your local jumble or charity shop. I can see the attraction as the trend for nostalgia and the ‘yesteryear’ is so strong.
I’m really looking forward to going to Premiere Vision Spring Summer 2011 show next week, this is the colour and textile forecasting show held in Paris twice a year. I have been going now for around 20 years; I find it very useful for colour development work, seeing the technical advancements that are happening in digital printing, weaving and machine printing. Sadly the famous trend forecaster Li Eldekoort doesn’t have any involvement with the audio visuals, a shame as they were very inspiring, she is really one of my favorites (see Sept Blog), you can still buy Bloom magazine at the newsagents but her View on Colour and INview are no longer in publication, luckily you can still buy back issues.
Indigo is on at the same venue; where you can buy designs directly from textile designers for the following season AW 11/12.
I’m constantly looking “out there ” for colour inspiration, on my early morning jogs (um… have only just started this so don’t hold your breath!) I have been watching some wonderful colour spreads. Not brilliantly in focus as snapped with my iphone whilst listening to my inspiring jogging music!
I really love the blues; lilacs mauves with the peaches and soft pastel yellows, there are an infinitesimal amount of colourways that you can work from using nature – its mouth watering!
Colour working Primrose Hill
Colour Work London Eye
Colour Work London Sky
At Decode, currently on at the V&A, the first thing you see is Daniel Brown’s ‘On Growth and Form’. Commissioned for the Porter Gallery, it’s just outside the exhibition and is massive in size, about 4 metres high. But despite this big scale, its position makes the work easy to miss and that, along with the fact that it’s the only Daniel Brown piece in the exhibition, is a real shame.
In it, muted colours and delicate floral, organic forms are constantly morphing to make images that change and grow; the result is hypnotic and soothing. It reminded me of a Fischli and Weiss exhibition I saw at the Musée d’Art Moderne in Paris back in 1999, which included Sichtbare Welt (Visible World), an installation where they layered double-exposed images of flowers on top of each other. When these slides were projected in slow transition and at a huge scale you had an illusion of movement plus a blast of colour and beauty to mind-blowing effect. Brown uses more advanced technology but the emotional power is the same; awesome and calming.
Daniel Brown 'On Growth and Form'
Seeing Fischli & Weiss’ installation when I was about to start my first wallpaper collection was a real inspiration for me to make large-scale digital banner prints. It was just at the time when both digital photography and digital printing were becoming more affordable, helping pattern and imagery become more ubiquitous in interior design.
Brown has already been commissioned to produce works for private clients but I think something like ‘On Growth and Form’ would be great in a hospital or public space. And pretty soon it might be possible to have work like this in our homes.
Daniel Brown 'On Growth and Form'
I think designers and artists seem to turn to nature images at a time of change when something comforting is needed. Fischli & Weiss’ flower installation was touring as we were approaching the end of a millennium and Brown’s work is on show as we enter a new decade, and in a period of uncertainty.
Elsewhere at Decode interesting works included the kinetic artwork ‘Weave Mirror’ by Daniel Rozin which uses image-capture combined with hundreds of C-prints that organise themselves into a light and shadow, ‘woven’ picture of the person looking at the work. It sounds (and probably is) complicated but is beautiful to look at. Oasis, a lightbox with black sand creating amoeba-like forms, the splodgey, interactive piece ‘Body Paint’ and Aaron Koblin’s ‘Flight Patterns’ a visualisation of the flights across US airspace in a single day also stood out. Unfortunately ‘Dandelion’ by Sennep/Yoke wasn’t working but I’d love to have seen it.
Decode is at the V&A til April 11th.
Here’s where you can read more about ‘Sichtbare’ by Fischli & Weiss.
In 1957, Stanley Coren and Tristram Hull set up Hull Trader’s, a company to promote ‘new ideas, good design and sound workmanship’. It became part of what was more like a movement that supported the creativity and production processes of designers, artists and craftsmen, rather than simply exploiting “design” in the commercial way we see so often now.
This year, Heal’s celebrates its bicentenary. During the early part of the last century, the store’s mission had a similar honesty and integrity to Hull Trader’s’ and I think this legacy of really nurturing and championing good design is something it could revisit in a big way. Plans seem afoot to do so with furniture but by delving into it’s amazing archive of fabric and wallpaper prints there’s a real opportunity. Similarly, although it was Cath Kidston who made retro florals desirable again, Laura Ashley has a wealth of vintage designs, and not just flowery prints, locked away, which could be tapped into, brought out and up-to-date, enabling them to take the world by storm again. Adopting this approach has really helped brands like Liberty and Sanderson’s reinvigorate themselves and it’s exciting to see. Back in 2004, Charlotte Abrahams in her article ‘Morris dance’ wrote this about a then-floundering Sanderson’s, “…here is our cry: face the challenge… You are sitting on one of the most exciting decorative archives in the world. All it needs is a bit of rethink (a colour update here, a change of scale there) and we’ll all come running.” They did and it worked. If you were a design-led company once, it’s worth reminding yourself of exactly that and a good way of doing this is to look back into your history and find inspiration in the design archive. All it takes is a bit of bravery but within their own treasure troves, these companies could find the key to a brighter future.
Huma Quresh’s recent review of the last decade of interior design really struck a chord with me. She says “Our noughties homes were characterised by comfort, colour, thrift and green living… interiors styles have grown more individual and less prescriptive…. back came colour and patterned wallpaper, and in came the feature wall, with everything from heavy damasks to florals and designer prints.” I couldn’t agree more.
Entering a brand new decade with continuing economic uncertainty, not to mention heading towards a general election, I believe that we’ll continue with more of the same, at least for a while. We’ll see even more patterns, prints and objects which, whether hand-made or using the latest technologies of mass production will at least look hand-made, old-fashioned and lo-fi with brush strokes visible and full or little quirks and smudges.
It’s part of the ever popular boho, shabby chic look that’s sweeping much of the Western world’s homes, cafes, bars and hotels: genuinely second-hand furniture and little junk-shop finds, mixed (but and deliberately not matched) with new hand-made pieces and some artfully distressed items to create an eclectic, unstructured and individual space. Places like Story Deli near our studio, or Annie Morris and Idris Khan’s home currently featured in Vogue that have an informal, unfinished - often because, purposely or otherwise, they really aren’t finished – feel. The desire for putting a stamp of personality and individuality in our homes, including as we have found by using wallpaper, offers people a less expensive way to add a new dimension to the home that makes it feel more like theirs.
Don’t know where the time goes but it seems we are now entering February, I have been back to the Museum of Everything twice as I just cant get enough of it and its local to me and I still find it sooooo inspiring. Outsiders Art is just incredible, I had been aware of the well known names like Alfred Wallis and Scottie Wilson but had no idea there was so much wonderful work out there !
I also popped into another show local this time to my studio in Shoreditch called If you could Collaborate . It has some work in by our friends BMCH the very talented graphic designers Ben and Mark. They have worked with us on our books, web, and printed materials.
For the show they’ve teamed up with product designers Smith&Wightman with a proposal for a new currency, all beautifully presented and very witty artifacts or maybe I should I say designifacts? The show is only on till Saturday so better hurry to catch it !
I was going to get some visuals to go with the following of this blog , but I guess you can all get that very easily yourselves so for a change I thought I would put something very happy ,very visually pleasing to the eye and very musical as a blast for the beginning of the new decade …hope you enjoy it as much as I do !
‘This too shall pass’ by OK GO Directed by Brian L. Perkins
The Pallant House exhibition included a lot of silk square designs by Moore and scarves are something I’ve become interested in again recently. Not only does Liberty have an entire room dedicated to the scarf but they recently collaborated with that quintessential home of the scarf; Hermes (and another icon less well-known for his accessories designs, Ronnie Wood). A couple of weeks ago The Guardian ran a 4-page feature on Hermes scarves coinciding in with the publication Thames & Hudson’s book on the same subject.
What’s great about scarves is that they can be like wearable paintings – their scale seems to offer a lot of creative possibility. And they are a more affordable way of having a little bit of designer luxury and a hint of pattern and colour in these grey times.
This weekend we took a trip out of town to visit Pallant House in Chichester. Extended to show the modern and contemporary art collection of architect Colin St John Wilson which includes work by John Piper, Patrick Caulfield, Sir Peter Blake, Howard Hodgkin and Lucian Freud, I was there specifically to see the Henry Moore textiles exhibition.
Moore often collaborated with David Whitehead – a leading fabric printer and also with Zika Ascher – one of my true inspirations. Many years ago I spent a few weeks working at the Ascher studio surrounded by old screens whose colours told the company’s rich creative history.
Fame in Fabric, Pathe film of Ascher studio
In the mid-1940s Ascher was known for collaborating with a range of artists including Matisse, Cocteau, Derain, Piper and Cecil Beaton. He forged a long-term relationship with Moore and the current exhibition at Pallant House tells their story brilliant. Moore’s constant sketching using so many media and materials and the textiles produced with Ascher were an exercise in trying to get onto cloth was what usually done on paper.
Moore’s textiles featuring his drawings of reclining ladies, birds and his barbed wire motifs were produced using complex techniques such as discharge printing. Their joy comes from a direct sense of Moore’s mark-making and of the artist himself.
Nowadays this is often lost in fabric design, financial considerations tend to limit the ability to experiment with tricky, time-consuming processes, instead speed, volume and cost-effectiveness are the order of the day. This means that mainstream design and production that rely heavily on computers, which definitely has its own merits, but there is perhaps a kind of flatness or lack of character in the final product. I love seeing brushstrokes or the differing weights in a hand-drawn line. It’s something I try from time to time in my own pieces.
Flora detail
Like Moore and Ascher, what works best for me is mixing different aspects – a painterly feel, handmade or retro qualities – with contemporary colours and methods in order to try and create something entirely new.
In the studio, we were discussing the merits of buying vintage earlier today. OK very old items might not be in perfect condition but in order to find really classic, unique pieces that express your own individuality and taste, it’s hard to beat vintage. Tomorrow’s ‘Passion for Fashion and Fine Textiles’ auction would be a great one to go to. Otherwise near our studio we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to vintage clothing (although the quality varies from shop to shop). Designer vintage pieces are best sourced at Rellik and One of a Kind in Notting Hill. If you happen to be in the States then Resurrection leads the field and stylists and trend-watchers always seem discover amazing pieces within the Clignancourt flea market. A great excuse to book that Eurostar Christmas shopping trip!
Getting out and about to absorb as much of the arts and culture available on my doorstep no doubt has a direct influence on my work but I also find a wealth of inspiration from online sources.
Now that all of Pathé’s newsreels are available online I’ve been checking a few out. They have an enormous archive covering news, sport, social history and entertainment from 1896 to 1970. The programmes about interior design and domestic life in general are especially fascinating. There are some great ones from the 1950s and 60s from which you can get a genuine insight into the materials, patterns, colours, furniture and other objects of that time.
Country Cottage – not sure if I like the final outcome of this but it’s fascinating to watch her striping the wallpaper in her finery , reminded me of seeing Gilbert and George recently blow torching the paint off a their front door in Spitafields all dressed up in their wonderful suits.
The Dome House – a great space to work in I wouldn’t mind one of these, I love how the windows open.
1953 Fashion Show – I love the stripey yachting outfit , how very NOW !
Carpets – Wilton and Axminster with some great shots of rural Britain and of hand knotting.
Another that I often delve into is VADS, the online resource for visual arts. It is managed by the Farnham Campus of the University College for the Creative Arts and is an extensive collection of images including fine art, illustration, advertising posters and textiles as well as including the Design Council’s slide collection and the London College of Fashion’s archive. Worth a look!