Hollyhock
Furnishing Fabric
1850 (made)
1850 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
This printed cotton fabric has a naturalistic floral design and was made in the mid-19th century. It was exhibited in 1852 in an exhibition called 'False Principles in Design' at the Museum of Ornamental Art in Marlborough House, curated by Henry Cole. Cole had been a member of the 1851 Exhibition committee which aimed to promote excellence in industrial design. This chintz, which retains traces of its original label (No.10), was condemned for 'Direct Imitation of Nature'.
Another of the exhibition organisers, Richard Redgrave, declared that 'the decoration of chintzes in particular seems at present to be of the most extravagant kind. Overlooking the fact that the lightness and thinness of the material will not carry a heavy treatment, and that...the use of imitative floral ornament is particularly unsuitable on account of the folds, the taste is to cover the surface almost entirely with large and coarse flowers...which are magnified by the designer much beyond the scale of nature'.
Despite the attempts of Cole and his successors to improve public taste, consumers continued to favour floral chintzes, which remain popular for draperies and upholstery to this day.
Another of the exhibition organisers, Richard Redgrave, declared that 'the decoration of chintzes in particular seems at present to be of the most extravagant kind. Overlooking the fact that the lightness and thinness of the material will not carry a heavy treatment, and that...the use of imitative floral ornament is particularly unsuitable on account of the folds, the taste is to cover the surface almost entirely with large and coarse flowers...which are magnified by the designer much beyond the scale of nature'.
Despite the attempts of Cole and his successors to improve public taste, consumers continued to favour floral chintzes, which remain popular for draperies and upholstery to this day.
Object details
Category | |
Object type | |
Title | Hollyhock (manufacturer's title) |
Materials and techniques | Printed cotton |
Brief description | Roller printed and glazed cotton furnishing fabric, England, mid-19th century |
Physical description | A naturalistic design with flowers, vines and conifer-like plants. |
Dimensions |
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Marks and inscriptions |
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Production | Produced by Arthur H Lee of Birkenhead |
Subject depicted | |
Summary | This printed cotton fabric has a naturalistic floral design and was made in the mid-19th century. It was exhibited in 1852 in an exhibition called 'False Principles in Design' at the Museum of Ornamental Art in Marlborough House, curated by Henry Cole. Cole had been a member of the 1851 Exhibition committee which aimed to promote excellence in industrial design. This chintz, which retains traces of its original label (No.10), was condemned for 'Direct Imitation of Nature'. Another of the exhibition organisers, Richard Redgrave, declared that 'the decoration of chintzes in particular seems at present to be of the most extravagant kind. Overlooking the fact that the lightness and thinness of the material will not carry a heavy treatment, and that...the use of imitative floral ornament is particularly unsuitable on account of the folds, the taste is to cover the surface almost entirely with large and coarse flowers...which are magnified by the designer much beyond the scale of nature'. Despite the attempts of Cole and his successors to improve public taste, consumers continued to favour floral chintzes, which remain popular for draperies and upholstery to this day. |
Bibliographic reference | Parry, Linda. British Textiles from 1850 to 1900 London : Victoria and Albert Museum 1993. Plate 19. |
Collection | |
Accession number | T.8-1933 |
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Record created | December 15, 1999 |
Record URL |
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