A MATISSE FOR £20?
Nobody would believe that it could be possible to nd a Matisse or Andy Warhol for less than £20 on eBay, but author Geoffrey Rayner did just that. And it wasn’t a painting or a limited-edition print, but a piece of fabric.
Apparently, lots of 20th-century artists were commissioned to design fabric. As well as Warhol and Matisse, Salvador Dalí, Jean Cocteau, Englishmen Henry Moore and John Piper, among others, have done drawings for furnishing and dress fabrics. According to Rayner, the reason they can turn up on eBay for little money is that few people recognise them and the fabric wears out and is thrown away. The results of Rayner’s painstaking research can be seen in his beautifully illustrated book, Artists’ Textiles 1940-1976.
In his research he often came up against a brick wall. ‘When we called the Andy Warhol Foundation in New York, we were told that his work had never appeared on fabric.’ But Rayner knew otherwise, for as well as working as a commercial artist designing advertisements and record covers, Warhol drew a beach-dress fabric called Sunning; Bright Butter ies.
‘The trouble is, his fabrics are difficult to nd because he did them for small, New York printers who have long ago disappeared and Warhol was very secretive about his life before he became famous,’ explains Rayner.
Matisse is easier to find. His work has appeared on American and English dress fabrics, and on wallpaper. Ascher was the English company that printed for the American market during the 1930s and 1940s. Czech refugees Zika and Lida Ascher commissioned leading artists, including Matisse, to design headscarves for the 1946 Britain Can Make It exhibition.
In the 1930s, the Edinburgh Weavers became a leading manufacturer of avant-garde rugs and fabrics. Among its stable of artists were Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson. In 1953, the rm bought paintings from the Painting Into Textiles exhibition, and translated the images from Elisabeth Frink, Keith Vaughan and William Scott, on to cloth.
‘There is an increasing interest in mid-century fabrics,’ says Rayner, and prices are climbing fast. Henry Moore tapestries are on display at Henry Moore’s house, now a museum in Hertfordshire, and pieces turn up on eBay, but often for more than £20.
What everyone’s looking out for now is a scrap of fabric by Lucian Freud, who made a few drawings for textiles when he was young.
Artists’ Textiles 1940-1976 by Geoffrey Rayner and Richard Chamberlain, published by Antique Collectors’ Club, priced £29.95. Readers can buy this at our special price of £21.08, plus £4 p&p. To order, call: 01394-389977
Alastair Morton And Edinburgh Weavers: Visionary Textiles And Modern Art by Lesley Jackson is published by V&A, priced £45
Edinburgh Weavers 01204- 900802, www.edinburghweavers.com
Henry Moore Foundation 01279- 843333, www.henry-moore.org
Email design enquiries to Hugh St Clair at homehelp@lady.co.uk
HOME HELP RETURNS NEXT WEEK
Apparently, lots of 20th-century artists were commissioned to design fabric. As well as Warhol and Matisse, Salvador Dalí, Jean Cocteau, Englishmen Henry Moore and John Piper, among others, have done drawings for furnishing and dress fabrics. According to Rayner, the reason they can turn up on eBay for little money is that few people recognise them and the fabric wears out and is thrown away. The results of Rayner’s painstaking research can be seen in his beautifully illustrated book, Artists’ Textiles 1940-1976.
In his research he often came up against a brick wall. ‘When we called the Andy Warhol Foundation in New York, we were told that his work had never appeared on fabric.’ But Rayner knew otherwise, for as well as working as a commercial artist designing advertisements and record covers, Warhol drew a beach-dress fabric called Sunning; Bright Butter ies.
‘The trouble is, his fabrics are difficult to nd because he did them for small, New York printers who have long ago disappeared and Warhol was very secretive about his life before he became famous,’ explains Rayner.
Matisse is easier to find. His work has appeared on American and English dress fabrics, and on wallpaper. Ascher was the English company that printed for the American market during the 1930s and 1940s. Czech refugees Zika and Lida Ascher commissioned leading artists, including Matisse, to design headscarves for the 1946 Britain Can Make It exhibition.
In the 1930s, the Edinburgh Weavers became a leading manufacturer of avant-garde rugs and fabrics. Among its stable of artists were Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson. In 1953, the rm bought paintings from the Painting Into Textiles exhibition, and translated the images from Elisabeth Frink, Keith Vaughan and William Scott, on to cloth.
‘There is an increasing interest in mid-century fabrics,’ says Rayner, and prices are climbing fast. Henry Moore tapestries are on display at Henry Moore’s house, now a museum in Hertfordshire, and pieces turn up on eBay, but often for more than £20.
What everyone’s looking out for now is a scrap of fabric by Lucian Freud, who made a few drawings for textiles when he was young.
Artists’ Textiles 1940-1976 by Geoffrey Rayner and Richard Chamberlain, published by Antique Collectors’ Club, priced £29.95. Readers can buy this at our special price of £21.08, plus £4 p&p. To order, call: 01394-389977
Alastair Morton And Edinburgh Weavers: Visionary Textiles And Modern Art by Lesley Jackson is published by V&A, priced £45
Edinburgh Weavers 01204- 900802, www.edinburghweavers.com
Henry Moore Foundation 01279- 843333, www.henry-moore.org
Email design enquiries to Hugh St Clair at homehelp@lady.co.uk
HOME HELP RETURNS NEXT WEEK