SOLD

George Walton Rug
c 1900

Walton, a Scottish architect and designer was commissioned around 1900 to design the interior decorations for Kodak shops in London. The V & A has a similar rug (Museum Circ. 116-1953) donated by Walton?s wife with the information. Walton's only training was at evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art, some years before it became famous. Youngest of twelve siblings, four others also went into the arts, including Edward Walton, who became one of the leading 'Glasgow Boys' In 1888 George opened his owninterior decoration and design shop in Glasgow, rapidly expanding until he was selling furniture, textiles and stained glass. In 1896 he completed the interiors in Miss Cranston's Buchanan Street tea rooms, Glasgow and refurbished the Rowntree tea rooms in Scarborough. In 1897 he left to set up a studio in Bayswater, London whilst the Glasgow business continued to flourish for a few extra years. It is likely that the rugs (there are only three known in existence ) were used as door rugs in the Kodak shops in Clerkenwell and Regent Street. Likely to have been made by Alexander Morton of Darvel, Ayrshire, Scotland. Walton and Morton?s son, James were close friends. My thanks to Linda Parry of V & A for supplying this new information.

Cataloguing

of woven wool designed by George Walton (1867-1933), one side with a central palmette flanked by two pairs of birds perched on stylised rose bushes, the second facing border with a pair of similar birds flanked by palmettes, in lovely shades of pink, yellow, pale blue and green and ivory on a blue/grey ground, edged with a narrow border of stylised meandering buds outlined in blue on a yellow border edged with narrow green stripes, 26 in d x 32 in w, late 19th c.

Condition

Very pretty colouring. This is not two borders joined together but has been specially woven as a rug. A little wear to the centre (probably where it has been folded) so that around six warp threads are showing. A little wear to outer edge at the sides, nothing noticeable.