ADVOCATE OF THE ARTISAN
A shared passion for products with provenance led editor Kerryn Harper - Cuss to seek a meeting with Helen Cormack, a staunch advocate of traditional fabric skills and one of the leading lights in the promotion of artisan design
For those who adore fabric, stepping into the showroom of Tissus dHelene is a little like entering the interiors equivalent of a barely known but delectable artisan chocolaterie. Pupils dilate at the fabrics stacked high, temptation abounds at every turn and one senses that perusing the exotic and hugely diverse selection could turn a mere penchant into something closer to addiction.
Founded by Helen Cormack in 2006, Tissus dHelene specialises in fabrics, wallpapers and rugs made by hand. The company ethos of promoting artisans of hand printing, hand block printing and hand weaving resonates loudly in the current climate, but because this is strictly a trade showroom for interior design professionals, few of the wider public know of its treasures.
Boldy dressed but softly spoken, Cormack would not see herself as a champion or pioneer, yet increasingly she is name - dropped by designers as a little black book resource for something special. The day we meet, huge rolls of bespoke fabric arrive discreetly for some of the very top names in the business. I learn that it is also not unusual for students from the KLC School of Design to visit for intimate seminars on fabric manufacture.
Cormacks staff are clearly impassioned by her knowledge, and her anticipation and excitement at the opening of each delivery is infectious. Yet intriguingly for one so emotionally absorbed by the subject, Cormack fell into the fabric trade by chance. Her father owned Cassell book publishers and Cormack always dreamed she would follow the same path. Instead, she found herself caught up in what she describes as "a series of the most incredible lucky breaks and remarkable opportunities". A chance meeting at a wedding led to an introduction to interior decorator Alan Bate of Scarisbrick & Bate and her first job. Cormack ended up working with Bate for six years. Her next two moves to Percheron and then to Claremont Furnishing Fabrics, the top two showrooms in London, were the result of being headhunted and finally another chance meeting, this time with Nina Campbell in 2006, led to an introduction to her first two artisan suppliers: Galbraith & Paul and Quadrille. Cormack fell in love with their collections and was offered the chance to represent them in the UK. "Starting with such extraordinary collections really dictated my path," she explains, "I quickly felt how important it was to try to help preserve traditional skills."
Although Cormack sees her journey as somewhat serendipitous, one senses that it has taken hard work and great vision to focus so specifically on artisan designs, and collate such a diverse handmade offering, long before it was the fashionable thing to do. It must also be a challenge to keep head and heart firmly balanced when making business decisions. Today she represents 35 artisans from England and Belgium to Italy, France and America and speaks warmly and intimately of their talents. Her conversation is peppered with personal references: "Nicole Fabres approach is as a textile historian focusing particularly on eighteenth - century French textiles. She wants her fabrics to be authentic... Galbraith & Paul are, to my knowledge, the last hand block printers working on a commercial level in America... Brian Lawrence has the most incredible crewels... John Stefanidis is printing almost entirely in cotton and has a very eclectic collection, which is one of the reasons I love it... Angel Hughes from Tobias and the Angel bought hundreds of hand blocks in a sale, taught herself hand block printing, taught a colleague and now runs courses. I went on one and it was one of the best days of my life," Cormack enthuses. When we researched images for this feature, many of the artisans were hugely complimentary about Cormack in return; valuing her guidance on colour variations specifically suited to the design tastes of a UK audience.
This autumn sees Cormack finally launch her own collection: a range of seven charming small prints based on slowly collected archival designs. She confesses the experience has been a revelation that feeds back into greater respect for those she represents. "When others come to me with their new fabrics it is so easy to look at them and think thats fabulous and will sell well. You can immediately make up your mind. But when you come to do your own you realise how much of their soul, their taste, their time has gone into the creation." When asked about the biggest challenges ahead, Cormack answers adamantly "to fight digital printing!" Her thoughts to future developments are equally emotional. "It is wonderful to see the resurgence of artisans; exciting to see that there are people now who really value such skills, who want something hand done, something unique," she says, before adding: "I love that each is doing what they love, that they are not bound by trends... they are the antithesis of trends. I find a wonderful constancy in that."
expert insight Helen Cormack reveals some of her loves and learnings.
The joy of cotton
I love cotton particularly. Linen is great but when you are printing really fine hand blocked prints, the tight weave gives a cleaner finish. John Stefanidis is printing almost entirely on cotton - he just loves the crisp results.
French expression
I went to France every year as a child and developed a love of French textiles. The Burger collection was always my favourite at the Percheron showrooms - eighteenth - century prints all drawn from designs bought in from the East Indian companies.
American advantage
The American collections are mostly printed to order, which means that the companies never have to discontinue anything and most keep the original screens for wonderful archives.
Print processes compared
Most hand printers in England and America do pigment printing, which is surface printing. Consequently, overlaying of colour is difficult. Marina Mill has refined this technique and achieves greater nuance. My new collection is being hand printed in France using reactive dyes, which sink into the fabric and allow overlaying of multiple colours and the rub count is higher.
Colour challenge
Of all colours, green using natural dyes is the most difficult to recreate consistently. Hence the lack of many greens in reproductions of eighteenth - century designs.
Continuing tradition
The owner of Marialida used to run Fortuny factory but set up on his own. He only prints to order but, incredibly, can offer bespoke colours for an order of 18 metres.
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