Michal Silver Sarah Burns
BARRON
&
LA RC H E R Textile Designers
Above, Skate, from Barron and Larcher’s Sample Book. Opposite, private Florida residence by Kara Hebert Interiors. Armchair and cushions in Skate. Following spread, Palm Beach Mustique, Samantha Knapp for Tiger Lily’s Greenwich. Sofas in Fleming. Contemporary prints of Barron and Larcher designs by Christopher Farr Cloth.
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Fleming, length, dyed with indigo and printed with discharge. Opposite, Carnac in brown, printed length.
S ET T I NG T H E S C E N E J E A N VA C H E R
B A R RO N A N D LA RC H E R F O R M E D A U N I Q U E PARTNERSH IP, SEEI NG THE PROCES S THROUGH F RO M D E S I G N TO T H E F I N I S H E D P I EC E .
I
t is the late 1920s and Phyllis Barron has been
stuff, all made by myself, and I don’t think that
asked by Detmar Blow, architectural advisor
she had ever in her life seen so much hand sewing,
to the Duke of Westminster, to visit the
which she really quite appreciated. She thought the
Duke at his hunting lodge near Bordeaux. She
whole affair rather amusing, and ordered cushions
has two suitcases full of long patterns suitable
for her Paris garden.1
for curtains. On showing these to the Duke, she is introduced to Coco Chanel. This proved to
Yet in their different fields, both were
be an interesting and brief flirtation between
pioneering women and modernists, and the
haute couture and modern craft that Barron later
timeless quality of their designs has outlived them.
recalled in the following terms:
There always has been an appetite for a revival of Barron and Larcher patterns, an appetite now
Mademoiselle Chanel, who was then living
being met through a collaborative project between
with him, was very interested. I think she thought
the Crafts Study Centre at the University for the
I was a very queer sort of person – she couldn’t
Creative Arts, which holds a pre-eminent collection
understand why I should want to do this strange
of their work, and Christopher Farr Cloth.
thing. I was dressed as usual entirely in my own
During the 1920s and 1930s, Phyllis Barron (1890–1964) and Dorothy Larcher (1882–1952)
Opposite, printing block for Chanel.
were at the forefront of a revival in hand block-
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B A R R O N & LA RC H E R
Take the print ‘Chanel’ and all the tales that surround its hound’s tooth motif with an unconventional indigo dab setting it apart. The print was designed for Coco Chanel, the iconic French fashion designer, but is it as straightforward and simple as that? Commissioned privately by Chanel and naturally named as such – well yes – or is there something more within the print about the nature of Chanel herself alongside Chanel the designer sparking the creative imaginations of the two makers of the print ‘Chanel’, injecting and projecting something unique in the Coco Chanel they saw and felt into the print mix? I considered the design and its function, cushions for her Paris flat, its garden seats, an upholstery commission – covering luxurious folding mattresses. It was said by Phyllis how much Chanel adored and wondered at the minutely detailed and hand-finished stitching, how she never tired of knowing how they were made. But look again at their design, it doesn’t speak of comfort or luxury; it’s bold, edgy and dislocated like an old Gillette razor. e Jane Weir – 2017 e
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Barron and Larcher made this wedding suit for their friend Eve Simmonds. It was made from honey-coloured velvet printed with Peach in black.
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THE PRINTMAKERS’ PERSPECTIVES
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THE PRINTMAKERS’ PERSPECTIVES
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BARRON
&
LA RC H E R Phyllis Barron and Dorothy Larcher were designer-makers who pushed the boundaries of textiles and hand blockprinting techniques. Resourceful and innovative, they ran a successful business from 1923 until the start of World War II, boasting clients such as Coco Chanel, the Duke of Westminster, Girton College, Cambridge, and Winchester Cathedral.
ISBN: 978-1-85149-920-5
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