After Bloomsbury: Rugs from the Omega Workshop, 1913-1916 at Somerset House

A collaboration between the contemporary rug producer Christopher Farr and the Courtauld Gallery, in which five-handcrafted rugs will be unveiled. Visitors to the Great Arch Lobby will encounter extraordinary modern-looking rugs displayed alongside their original designes of nearly 100 years ago. Farr has been at the forefront of rug design for over 20 years and he and his business partner Matthew Bourne have brought a new vitality to textile art. The short-lived Omega workshops marked one of rhe most creative momenrts in the history of modernist craft. Founded in 1913 by critic Roger Fry, the workshops were a laboratory of radical ideas, involving many of the avant-garde artists of the day, notably Fry's friends from the Bloomsbury group. Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell. Inspired by European art movements, especially Fauvis, Cubism and the work of Picasso, Braque and Matisse as well as African art, the workshops created a range of objects forb the home, from rugs to linenes to cerasmics, fruniture and clothing - and blodly coloured and patterned with dynamic abstract designs. They remained open during the First World War but closed in 1919. These six years saw a period of intense creativity. The workshops were run on a principle of anonymity. Artists were not allowed to sign their work, so each piece was stamped, woven or printed with the Omega logo. The best of the rug designs are bold and lyrical with a strong use of the colour black, often in geometric patterns. Farr's rugs are inspired by five of the most vibrant and challenging designs, and will be for sale at prices ranging from £5,000 to £15,000.