Introduction
Christopher Farr has been at the spearhead of contemporary rug design for over twenty years. Together with his business partner Matthew Bourne, they were the catalyst that revolutionised contemporary rug design.
Starting with a small shop in a leafy area of north London, a stone's throw from Primrose Hill, this one time painter, trained at the Slade School, wrought a vision that combined the art of the times with a different form.
From cool minimalism to bold neo-expressionism influenced by the artists Ryman, Albers and Martin, his medium was no longer oil on canvas, but wool and dye, spun and woven by hand into objects that were more than mere floor coverings. They were themselves works of art.
In 1988, the bulk of Christopher Farr's business was dealing in antique decorative and tribal rugs. At the same time, ever the artist, Farr was compelled to do a small run of his own contemporary designs, which caught the eyes of London's cutting edge design community.
Then in 1991, a colloboration with Royal College of Art textile and fashion students to design a group of rugs for an exhibition entitled 'Brave New Rugs' became a breakthrough event in the world of design. The resulting attention the show received led to a further collaboration in 1993 with Romeo Gigli, the accalimed Italian fashion designer that brought immediate international attention.
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