This new addition to our range of canvas prints is an original vintage wallpaper design from the 1950s. Printed on 100% cotton canvas and sealed with matte varnish, ‘Tudor Velvet‘ has opulent shades of crimson, pink and soft umber with a rich, velvety appearance. It is hand produced and stretched over a sturdy pine wood frame.
‘Tudor Velvet’ references the English Tudor rose motifs, which featured particularly in Elizabethan embroidery and paintings. The overall effect is of a piece of velvet studded with small dog roses. The two floral motifs have four petals each. By reducing the number of petals from five to four, the floral motifs have been given a modern, up-to-date look, and they prefigure the later graphic floral motifs of the 1960s, as popularised by the designer Mary Quant.
First created in the 1950s as a feature wallpaper pattern, this design uses only three colours. It was intended for the silk screen printing process, and the simple colour range was inexpensive to reproduce.
1950s Design
In the 1950s-1960s period, ‘clashing’ colours were fashionable, rather than colours which harmonised. Purples were used with greens; reds, oranges and pinks were put together, creating a dynamic visual tension. The feature wallpaper, usually for one wall only, was meant to be optically challenging, although it frequently matched some of the colours used in the rest of the interior. ‘Tudor Velvet’ has clashing pink and red hues with a dull umber shade, which contends with both colours.
The overall harmony of the design, however, offsets this discordant colourway, with regular neat rows of evenly-sized motifs. Despite the slightly jarring colours, ‘Tudor Velvet’ has a smooth, meticulously-spaced quality which is pleasant and attractive. Hand-painted in velvety Designers’ Gouache colours, the richness of the original work has been faithfully reproduced in our fine art prints and printed canvases, which have the same matte smoothness.
This long-lasting and fade-proof original canvas print will add a stylish note to your decor!