Christopher Farr will celebrate 25 years in business by launching a new collection of limited edition tufted rugs at Somerset House on 2 May until 30 June.
Josef Albers (1888-1976) Homage to the Square: Blue, White, Gray, 1951. Hand-tufted rug, wool 1.75 x 1.75m. Produced in association with the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2013 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/ VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn and ARS, New York. Edition of 150
Showing contemporary design rugs in traditional interiors not only provides an arresting visual context but can also suggest other less obvious narratives. Christopher Farr’s launch of a new collection of limited edition tufted rugs at Somerset House in London on 2 May celebrates the company’s 25th anniversary and puts nine rugs rugs by celebrated 20th century artists and designers at the heart of the English establishment. Somerset House, the much under-appreciated Neo- Classical masterpiece on the Strand and on the Thames overlooking the Southbank Centre, started life in the 18th century as the home of the Admiralty but is now a thriving arts and culture hub housing the Courtauld Institute of Art and a busy schedule of exhibitions. With the building thriving with a new found vibrancy, it is an appropriate place for the celebration of a company that started the idea of artist-designed carpet and its new venture of a diffusion range: high design but in less expensive form.
Anni Albers (1899-1994) Study Rug. Initially conceived as a 1926 cotton and silk wall hanging Hand-tufted rug, wool. Produced in association with the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation Edition of 150
Christopher Farr Editions is a new departure for the company who are know more for bespoke rug commissions and handknotted collaborations with designers and artists. These collections are produced in limited editions of 50 to 200 and are hand-tufted, made of 100% wool and range in price from £650 to £1,000. Matt Bourne hopes that these rugs will make textile art available to a wider group of collectors. And what better place than Somerset House with its association with the Courtauld.
Lara Bohinc (b. 1972), Solar Eclipse. Hand-tufted rug, wool, diameter: 1.5 m. Edition of 150
The selection of artist ranged from the masters of Bauhaus and modernism such as Josef and Anni Albers, British abstract expressionist artist William Scott through to artists of today such as Kate Blee and Lara Bohinc and Farr himself. To see the full collection of rugs visit www.christopherfarr.com or see the collection until 30 June at Somerset House.
Christopher Farr (b. 1953) Sulpice Hand-tufted rug, wool 1.22 x 1.83 m Edition of 150
