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wall carpets

May 16, 2013

Hello. It’s sunny in london, can you believe it? 

Now, who loves colour? Who loves illustrations? Who loves the british landscape? Who loves carpets? Well, for those of you that do, here is a visual treat. My very first blog was on my friend john, artist extraordinaire. I showed you bits of his home. John will be turning 80 next year but this does not stop the man travelling around the world and enthralling us with his art.

John’s new exhibition ‘british landscapes‘ was first shown at the knitting and stitching shows last autumn and will now travel to a number of galleries in the UK.

“My current exhibition was inspired by british landscapes. Many of the designs were worked from drawings, painting and photographs taken on site and then worked into designs in my studio in london.

I have, since childhood, been fascinated by landscape. In this exhibition more than any of my others, my design aim was to show my personal emotional response to the countryside. I have allowed myself artistic licence to move a hill if it stops the view of the sea beyond it. I have put a different prehistoric image in place of the one actually there. I hope this will encourage people to look harder and work out what is real and what I have changed in the designs, particularly in the designs where they are familiar with the actual location. Always however, I have remained true to the actual essence of the landscape in my design”

John designs and graphs the carpets in his studio in london and gets them hand woven in silk and wool in nepal.

Well, i’ll leave you with some of john’s gorgeous wall carpets. Enjoy!

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Have a good weekend. See you guys on monday. 

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23 Comments

  • Reply Doris May 16, 2013 at 7:22 pm

    Tina, what a beautiful array of colour and texture. Thank you for sharing John’s work. My favourites are 3, 6 and the last one – what an array of colour! Have a lovely weekend. xD

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:19 pm

      Ha. I think 3, 6 and the last one did very well. I know, the colours are amazing!

  • Reply michaela May 17, 2013 at 8:32 am

    Beautiful – what amazing colour – reminds me a lot of the Artist Matisse (i.e. – a very good thing!). You can really feel the quality of the texture from the photos too – makes you want to run your fingers over them! 🙂 x

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:20 pm

      Hahaha. John LOVES Matisse. A huge compliment:-)

      Yes, the texture is rather beautiful and so are the colours! x

  • Reply Gerard @WalnutGrey May 17, 2013 at 10:44 am

    These are quite beautiful Tina. I think no. 3 is my favourite. I adore that little pink house. I also recognise that horse.

    John is a real inspiration to all creatives. I love that he is turning 80 next year and still working away. So cool!

    Thanks xx

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:22 pm

      No 3 is also my favourite:-))

      I feel the same way. He is so young and dapper… I always forget his age when we’re out. Really, he has more energy than you and me together:-)
      Thanks G x

  • Reply Chi @ 106 May 17, 2013 at 3:44 pm

    I remember your first post on John like it was yesterday and I remember the admiration I felt for him then. 😀

    John’s rugs are great – so vibrant and I love the fact that they are woven in silk and wool – but it is the man himself that I’m blown away by.

    He’s clearly still curious about the world around him and passionate about what he does. A lot people are so hung up on retirement even though they are fit and healthy enough to continue living rich, productive lives. What an inspiration! 😀 x

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:24 pm

      Ha. It seems like a life ago, right??

      Yes, they are rather beautiful but I also love him as a friend, an artist and an inspiration to getting older!!
      I think the ageing population is so neglected and underestimated. John is a great role model and I feel honoured to be his friend x

  • Reply Alison Sye May 17, 2013 at 4:59 pm

    What an impressive body of work. They are all stunning, but my favourite is the little pink house.

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:24 pm

      Ha. The pink house wins again. Thanks ALison.

  • Reply Catherine May 18, 2013 at 7:00 am

    Wonderful designs by John, the carpets are so beautiful and vibrant. I love that he is still living his passion at 80. How clever are the beautiful people in Nepal who weave John’s designs also. xxx

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:25 pm

      Clever and difficult at times. But aren’t they talented???
      Thanks Catherine xx

  • Reply Nicola May 18, 2013 at 11:34 am

    What beautiful colours and textures, the softness comes across. Great for muting a room full of hard finishes -as well as the lovely image to see.

    I like the pink house too, as well as the White Horse. the last image is reminiscent of Matisse

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:27 pm

      Thanks Nicola. You are so right. I also love the softness. The colours always get to me . The last one is very very bright and breathtakingly beautiful. x

  • Reply leah of sang the bird May 19, 2013 at 3:18 am

    You had me at “It’s sunny in london”.
    Yay yay yay!! **insert happy dance**
    These are amazing. I love number 3 with the sweet little pink house.
    xxx

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:28 pm

      No, not sunny any longer:-(

      I love that so many of you love the pink house xx

  • Reply Igor May 20, 2013 at 1:31 am

    What fabulous work you’ve featured here!! Wall carpets always seemed so old fashioned to me, probably I’ve seen too many ugly ones in my childhood. But these are a real pleasure for the design loving eye!! I really like the sixth one! Happy new week!

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:28 pm

      I know, I feel the same way. I think John might be on to a new trend. You need a big space to show them off properly, bit like a painting really x

  • Reply Holly May 20, 2013 at 8:56 am

    What an awesome project. And John is quite the inspiration. Thanks for sharing. I love Pink House too! There’s a quality to it, reminiscent of my grandma’s needlepoint, which I adore. I also like Midday Moon.

    Xx.

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:30 pm

      My aunt used to do Goblain needlepoints. Her whole flat was filled with it. I think there’ll be a come back and they’ll be in fashion again.
      Pink House yay!

  • Reply We Heart Home May 22, 2013 at 10:07 am

    Hi Tina,

    I agree with Holly and Gerard, number 3 is really lovely. I think the others might be too much for me.

    Trisha x

    • Reply tina May 23, 2013 at 9:30 pm

      Haha. The pink house certainly won the most votes.
      Thanks Trisha x

  • Reply rhs chelsea flower show colourliving May 25, 2015 at 12:40 am

    […] friend John gifted me his ticket as he was unable to go. So, off I went last Wednesday afternoon. The weather […]

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