Tune your decor into the spirit of jazz . . .
MUSIC might make our hearts sing and our feet tap, but does it really influence the way we decorate our homes?
Yes, says Professor Catherine Tackley, author of The Evolution Of Jazz In Britain 1880-1935 and curator of rhythm And reaction: The Age Of Jazz In Britain, an exhibition running at Two Temple Place in London until April 22.
Tackley says that jazz’s unique rhythm influenced everything from the design of shoes to the shape of sofas and sculptures. The soft florals of the William Morris era were replaced by abstract angularity. ‘The jazz age broke with tradition,’ she says. ‘It was daring and dangerous. Epitomised by a vibrant energy, by artists experimenting with different forms and shapes in a way that simply hadn’t been done before.
‘You can see the influence of the sound of jazz in the patterns on textiles and ceramics. The shapes are full of movement, and the colour palette became much more vivid, with oranges, electric blues and yellows.’
Tackley cites the designer Gregory Brown, who created textiles with repetitive, rhythmic shapes and patterns, as an example of an artist influenced by the rhythm of jazz.
David Wilkinson, founder of Loome Fabrics, says that the strong geometric patterns of the jazz era are finding favour once more. He commissioned an artist to recreate a Gregory Brown print (Deco Eclectic Gregory Brown Amber Arches, £63 per metre, loomefabrics.co.uk) because he was so struck by its power.
‘ We’re seeing a surge of interest in textiles,’ he says, ‘with prints by artists like Koloman Moser. He died a hundred years ago, but his patterns still feel very modern. You can see the strength and vigour in them.’ (Koloman Moser Designs Black and White Deco Swirls £87 per metre, loomefabrics.co.uk).
The sound of jazz influenced painters such as Picasso and Kandinsky, and while most of us can’t stretch to one of their works, if you want jazz-inspired original art on your walls, the Kent-based artist Charlie Oscar Patterson credits the sound with inspiring him ( Gouldian, Yellow Back Orange Head, £660, saatchiart.com).
The Twenties and Thirties, the era that Great Gatsby author F. Scott Fitzgerald christened ‘ the jazz age’, is, according to designer and historic interiors specialist Caroline de Cabarrus, ( hotspurdesign.com), the first breath of modernism.
‘ It was about being free from the strictures of tradition, celebrating the age of the machine and all the possibilities that provided. Huge skyscrapers were going up; glass, chrome and brass were the materials of the moment,’ she says.
Furniture got lower, coffee tables made an appearance for the first time, and after the horrors of World War I, there was a longing for opulence and glamour. Sandrine Zhang-Ferron, who founded Vinterior, an online vintage retailer, two years ago, says she has seen an explosion in demand for furniture and accessories from the Twenties and Thirties. ‘There’s a growing interest in owning one- off quirky pieces,’ she says. ‘People are prepared to take more risks with their interiors. They want to express their difference and individuality through their homes.’ You can pick up a Twenties sofa from about £1,500 or an Ian Sandler vase, the geometric pattern decorated in vivid blues and yellows for £ 50 ( vinterior.co). If you want something brand new, the jazz age influences many contemporary designs. The square arms and backs on so many sofas first appeared in the Twenties, says Caroline de Cabarrus. Try the Eden sofa in velvet, £1,579, sofawork shop.com. And although the roaring Twenties prided themselves on embracing the modern world, there was also a fascination with the ancient and exotic. ‘After the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922, there was a thirst for all things Egyptian,’ says Amanda ransom, who specialises in historic interiors, ( amandaransom.com). The strong blues and oranges associated with Ancient Egypt were incorporated into interiors and so, too, were pyramid shapes. Embrace the look with a Pyramid console in copper, £704, outthereinteriors.com. Understated elegance? Not a bit of it. Confident, bright, brash and fun is the way forward.