Last Monday, we went to see the Ethel Mairet and Fred Partridge exhibition at The Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon. It was well worth the trip. It may only be one room, but what a story it told! We easily spent an hour and a half there, and if it wasn’t for the school run, we might have stayed longer.
We’ve known about Ethel Mairet for a while, and I often talk about her in awed tones as the founder of modern handweaving. I knew her own personal life was full of ups and downs, with two marriages and two divorces, with several house moves along the way. She must have been made of strong stuff.
What I didn’t know was the details about her family, her brother Fred and sister Alice Maud, both very talented jewellers, both linked with the Arts and Crafts movement who lived in Ditchling with Ethel when she made the move to Sussex.
White scarf decorated with felted spots woven into the Fabric
Ditchling Museum of Arts and Crafts
1930’s Handwoven length in a check pattern. Stripes made from black, yellow and undyed cotton, and black grey and undyed Welsh wool.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts
1940’s Handwoven length of fabric made from black, red, fawn, and undyed Welsh wool and cotton.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts
1921 Handwoven silk shawl using black and natural colours, decorated with a fringed edge on either end.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts
It was during her first marriage to Ananda Coomaraswarmy that Ethel learnt to weave. They both admired the textiles and traditions while they lived in Sri Lanka and India and for Ethel it seems to be the constant throughout her life. Her own textiles focus on texture of different yarn types, often mixing cotton with wool or silk, including synthetics when available and suited her purpose. The weave structures she uses are simple; plain weave, gauze and honeycomb all feature, making the overall effect gentle, but inviting closer inspection.
1924 Handwoven wrap made by Ethel Mairet in pink/purple with weft stripes in purple, orange- brown and blue and a knotted fringe at either end. The surface is bobbied as is consistent with silk.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts
1950 A handwoven stole or wrap , black and white cotton and chenille using plain weave with a spaced reeding and cut weft tufts.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts
1940’s A piece of handwoven length made from black and natural cotton, grey and yellow wool.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts
The volunteer steward welcomed us to the exhibition saying that the Partridge siblings had lives that were the stuff of soap operas and while we can’t argue with that, Ethel Mairet drive and energy to keep them all together with food on the table is impressive. At her studio at Gospels she trained over 130 weavers, apprentices and work girls to weave. The textiles were sold under the label of ‘Gospels’, so no one weaver was credited and the name was gender neutral at a time when being a woman may have had her on the back foot in the textile industry. She acknowledged that the handweaver must work hand in hand with industry, keeping on top of trends and not let handweaving become twee and nostalgic. She taught many of weavers, who we now recognise as being authorities in weaving; Peter Collingwood, Marianne Straub and Alistair Morton among them. Yet despite being this enormous figure in the story of twentieth century crafts, internationally recognised in her own lifetime, she has only had one book written about her in 1983.
If you haven’t yet discovered the work of Ethel Mairet, this Exhibition is well worth a visit and even if you thought you knew her, you might find something new. The exhibition runs until 29th October – if you have an interest in natural dyes, spinning and weaving, and can get to Barnstaple before then, we urge you to go. (The tearoom is pretty good too!)
1939 Handwoven white wool and cotton jacket. Thick hand-spun white wool and fine black and white cotton weft.
*Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts