Timeless textiles

QR codes remind me of the classical inspired look of former RCA graduate (now honorary fellow and visiting professor), Sue Timney, whose work was recently on show at London’s Fashion and Textiles Museum.

Back in the early 1980s, finding someone to buy your designs meant trekking half way around the world – in her case to Japan, where her printed silk scarves, shirts, ties, ceramics and stationery were snapped up by luxury retailers, enabling her and ex-partner, Grahame Fowler, to expand their Timney-Fowler business in the UK. Since 2001, Timney has concentrated mainly on private and commercial interiors projects, and is known for her distinctive monochrome styling. She’s also designed restaurants and styled Joseph’s interior shop, ‘Pour la Maison.’








































The exhibition featured a lot of her 1990s work, which was developed for fashion and interiors, using images recurring throughout the cut out work of Timney Fowler – statues, architectural details, cutlery, furniture, clocks, musical instruments, animals, heraldic symbols, kitchen implements and decorative frames.







































Clocks and clock faces have been something of a trademark of her style between 1985 and 2010. Many of the clock images are based on an original art deco railway clock, which was also on show at the exhibiton. Astronomy is another theme she’s interpreted in her uniquely bold manner.





























Emma Shipley’s printed textiles, currently on display at the RCA show, are equally stunning. Her drawings are inspired by botanical illustrations. Some are drawn by hand using graphite pencil on hot pressed paper to assure a ‘quiet asymmetry’, and other designs are developed using a computer, programmed to incorporate a random element into the process.



























As it happens, founder of the Fashion and Textiles Museum, fashion designer Zandra Rhodes, is also an RCA graduate. And, if you’re looking to invest in a piece of vintage textile design, we’ve a curiously collectable 1970s Zandra Rhodes painted lady silk scarf at ShopCurious.

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QR coding the future of design

The Royal College of Art’s graduate show, Show RCA 2011, starts tomorrow. Billed as ‘a must see event for anyone interested in 21st century art and design,’ the description fails to convey the breathtaking creativity and innovative genius of the designers whose work is on display.

This year, a unqiue QR code is incorporated into the details of each of the 431 students works, linking to their relevant page in an online catalogue, their Linkedin profiles and CVs.




What we may eventually discover is that blown up versions of QR codes are great as works of art in their own right, especially as the monochrome look is so popular in interior styling these days - and mosaics are also experiencing something of a revival.

ShopCurious spotted this fabulous fashion inspired QR piece (left), please let us know if you have any information on the artist.



RCA exhibitor Thorunn Arnadottir’s designs incorporate both QR technology and mosaics. Her project explores ‘the juxtaposition of fame and personal privacy in the new environment.’ By fusing ancient African methods - beads for communication and masks that project identity with modern technology - she proposes a way of channeling the current obsession with vanity and fame, to the benefit of NGOs and charitable organizations.













But she’s also created this ‘super-self-promotional dress’ for a pop star Kali in Steed Lord (see below). The curiously clever fashion statement is composed of QR codes that link to online promotional material, which can be viewed instantly on fans’ mobile phones.

I'm not sure if Kali really needs the dress...

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