Mid-Century Modern: Art & Design from Conran to Quant explores the lifestyle revolution that swept through post-war Britain, changing the social landscape forever. Featuring art and design by a group of radical young revolutionaries including Mary Quant, Terence Conran, Eduardo Paolozzi, Nigel Henderson, Bernat Klein, Bernard and Laura Ashley, Wendy Ramshaw and others.
Spanning the period from 1952 to 1977 Mid-Century Modern presents furniture, fashion, textiles, lighting, home-ware and ceramics in an exhibition that delves into not only the style, but also the socioeconomic importance of this transformative period on everyday life.
The modern wicker, steel, and glass furniture of Conran and the early smocks, textile designs, and dresses of Bernard and Laura Ashley are displayed alongside the PVC coats, Op Art and Space Age dresses by Quant. The exhibition also looks to the textiles, ceramics and furniture of Eduardo Paolozzi and Nigel Henderson who were founding members of the Independent Group, and together created innovative designs under their company Hammer Prints established in 1954.
Presenting an often-overlooked insight into the lesser-known early work of Bernard and Laura Ashley, the exhibition draws on their concepts that were influencing culture long before their iconic florals. Bernard Ashley’s textile design, Jazz Players, was probably the first example of a ‘Pop’ textile, whilst Laura’s simple hard-wearing striped smocks, aprons, and the easy to wear ‘basic dress’ would go on to become design classics.
Mid-Century Modern considers not only design of the period, but the creation of trailblazing shopping experiences – from Mary Quant’s rebellious London boutique Bazaar (opened in 1955) to Terence Conran’s Habitat (opened in 1964).
With Bazaar, Quant irreversibly altered the traditional approach to fashion design and retailing, and outraged the all-powerful French fashion establishment. With Habitat, Conran created a retail environment that was a total work of art, ‘a Gesamtkunstwerk’, combining the theatre of The Chelsea Set’s London with the relatively new phenomenon of ‘serve yourself’, supermarket-style shopping. These shops were not just about designing for a new young generation, but also promoting a new way of shopping and living.
In order to spotlight not just the fashion, but the lifestyle and design of the time, Mid-Century Modern is presented in the form of detailed tableaus. During the mid-1950s, the increasing availability of inexpensive foreign package holidays and films with exotic European settings inspired the eruption of coffee bars, bistros and other distinctly continental establishments on British high streets. Throughout the exhibition, individual sets are inspired by these new and exciting continental trends, utilising furniture, fashion, textiles and more to highlight how changes in social attitude intertwined with new ways of shopping, to create the designs now synonymous with 1960s life.
Celia Joicey, Director of Dovecot Studios says:
We are delighted to bring this exhibition to Scottish audiences to explore a time of radical change in Britain’s history through a cultural lens. With the lasting appeal of Mid-Century Modern style, this is an opportunity to witness how art and design has, and continues, to influence how we lead our lives.
Exhibition supported by The Dovecot Foundation and organised by the Fashion and Textile Museum, London
From 3 April 2020 Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh