Marvellous design by one of my favourite mid century modern designers. John Piper (1902-1993) designed stained glass windows for Sanderson's new showroom in Berners St, London W1. He also designed the stained glass windows for Oundle School chapel, Oundle, Peterborough, and then rei-interpreted the design as a textile Arundel, one of five fabrics designed for Sanderson's prestigious Centenary Collection in 1960. The phonetic similarity between Oundle and Arundel also suggets that there was perhaps an error in transciption when the fabric was named, or it was a loose homage.* The colours are clear and vibrant and were printed on a lovely sateen cotton ground. The fabric was exhibited in Modern Art in Textile Design at the Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester 1962.
The last photo is of a catalogue cover. The text reads: The jacket designs is reproduced from a sketch by John Piper from the great panel of stained glass which will greet visitors to the new Sanderson headquarters in Berners Street, London.
I have several similar lengths. They would look wonderful hanging on a wall, or mounted onto stretchers for hanging. We can do this for you.
The selvedge printed with Arundel. An original screen print by Sanderson , with fifteen different narrow stained glass panels of draped figures wearing crowns, in orange, turquoise, red, grey, ochre, green, blue, each narrow panel 13 in x 2 1/2 in ; 35 x 6.5 cm
5ft 1 in x 49 in ; 1.55 x 1.25 m wide
I have a total of 4 similar pieces.
Excellent. When measuring I did not measure the section at the bottom where there are stitching holes. These were curtains which I have unpicked.
*Simon Martin John Piper. The Fabric of Modernism p 26
Jackson, Lesley 20th century Pattern Design. p 154.
Rayner, Geoffrey; Chamberlain, Richard & Stapleton, AnnaMarie Artists' Textiles in Britain 1945-70 p 82/83
Fabric exhibited at Modern Art in Textile Design, Whitworth Art Gallery 1962.
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