The Rose
A rare and exceptionally large Arts & Crafts carpet, designed by C.F.A. Voysey, made by Alexander Morton & Co., Killybegs, Donegal, Ireland, circa 1900.
Provenance:
Sir Evan David Jones, Pentower, Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Wynford Vaughan-Thomas.
19ft 8in x 11ft 3in : 600cm x 343cm
Voysey, though he was an architect, proved his versatility in designing for wallpaper, fabrics, metalwork, furniture and carpets. In the September 1893 issue of The Studio journal, Voysey when interviewed on his thoughts regarding inspiration from nature, says ‘…although he has gone directly to Nature, his work will not resemble (that of) any of his predecessors, he has become an inventor.’ The Rose carpet illustrates his point. Voysey followed on from William Morris, who was looking to the past for design inspiration, Voysey on the other hand was looking forward. The simplification of form, flattened perspective and decorative aesthetic became the main stylistic criteria for the Arts and Crafts artists and designers.
Though the Rose design was woven on numerous occasions, each carpet has their own individual character. The present carpet, of rare exceptionally large format, would indicate a commissioned piece, in this case for the drawing room at Pentower, built in 1898 following the Arts & Crafts style, for Sir Evan David Jones, who was a politician and an engineer. Later on the noted Welsh broadcaster, writer and journalist Wynford Vaughan-Thomas, lived there.
The house had four Arts & Crafts carpets commissioned from Liberty’s, of which the present example and another are in our collection, the other two, previousley with us, are now in the John Bryan collection at Crab Tree Farm in Lake Buff, Illinois. The colours employed create a harmonious and relaxing mood, making this fine carpet able to be placed within a traditional or contemporary interior design scheme, in essence timeless.
The Victoria & Albert Museum, London, has an example of the Rose, though in a
Literature:
The Art Journal, 1900, p80, illustrates a sample section.
Linda Parry and David Cathers, Arts & Crafts Rugs for Craftsman Interiors, The Crab Tree Farm Collection, W.W. Norton & Co, New York, London, 2010, Cat no 21, p67.
