- The story of pioneering modernist designer-makers Phylis Barron and
Dorothy Larcher- Explores how Barron and Larcher built a hand-printed
textile business that counted Coco Chanel and the Duke of Westminster
among its clients- Includes historic and contemporary illustrations, and
text contributions from interior designer Kit Kemp and design writer
Alan Powers "A design isn't dozens of little objects, or hungry-looking
rectangular windowpanes: it is something that becomes a design by
repeating, giving you something that a single pattern doesn't give you.
" - (Phyllis Barron, Dartington 1964) During the 1920s and 1930s,
Phyllis Barron (1890-1964) and Dorothy Larcher (1882-1952) were at the
forefront of a revival in hand block-printing in Britain. As
designer-makers they formed a unique partnership, producing innovative
textiles and seeing the entire process through from beginning to end.
Using whatever materials they could muster - fabric ranging from balloon
cotton to prison sheets and velvet, and everyday items such as combs and
car mats for printing - and pushing the boundaries of what could be
achieved with predominantly natural dyes, these two remarkable women ran
a successful business that lasted from 1923 until the outbreak of World
War II. Nearly one hundred years on, another special collaboration
between the Craft Studies Centre in Farnham, Christopher Farr Cloth and
Ivo Prints, has brought a selection of Barron and Larcher's work back
into production. The warm welcome they have received across the globe is
a testament to the timeless quality of great design. Contents:
Introduction - Michal Silver; Setting the scene - Jean Vacher; My Life
as a Block Printer - Phyllis Barron; Real Taste - Alan Powers; The
Printmakers' Perspective - Sarah Burns, Neisha Crosland, Louisa Loakes;
Indigo Christmas Crackers - Jane Weir; How Barron and Larcher have
Inspired Me - Kit Kemp.
