The art nouveau liberty style, its suppliers, products and Archibald
Knox.
 Among
the many lines imported by Liberty were Kayserzinn and WMF pewter
from Germany. Both of these companies had successfully married cheap
production costs with artistic design to produce sophisticated metalware
for a mass market.
Unlike
the work of the Guilds their products were created using the automated
techniques of spinning and die-casting.
In
1899, Inspired by their success and driven by manager
John Llewellyn, Liberty & Co went into production. In that same
year they exhibited two small collections of silver ware and jewellery
bearing their own assay mark, first at the shop and then at the
Arts and Crafts exhibition. 
Their
"Cymric"
range had been born. The machine produced silver and jewellery was
hand finished and often decorated with a variety of semi precious
stones, abalone and of course enamel, giving it the appearance of
a luxury product.
It was three years before the less expensive and more accessible
"Tudric"
range was introduced. This was made from pewter rather than silver
making it available to a wider public.
From
1902 a large range of designs were produced in conjunction
with the silversmiths W. H. Haseler with glass liners and decanter
bodies being provided by James Powell and sons of Whitefriars and
glass from James Couper & Sons of Glasgow's "Clutha"
range.
Both
Tudric and Cymric were produced right into the 1930's but the early
years, particularly between 1902 and 1905, saw the most accomplished
and daring designs.
A
strong sense of his Celtic ancestry combined with a powerful modernist
streak and an unerring sense of proportion led to some of the most
important designs of the Arts & Crafts movement. His work ranged
from very pared down modernist work with minimal ornament, relying
largely on form and line, to highly decorated organic pieces with
breath-taking intricacy and complexity. Pieces heavily influenced
by his Celtic heritage and decorated with stylised knots would not
look out of place in the Book of Kells.
In
addition to metalware and jewellery Knox designed terracotta garden
ornaments, carpets and fabrics for Liberty & Co, seemingly mastering
each discipline with ease. He was held in such high esteem that,
even after his association with Liberty & Co had ended, in 1917
he was commissioned to design the headstone for Arthur Lasenby Liberty's
grave.
 Among
these designers are such great names as Jessie M King, Mary Watts,
Oliver Baker, Bernard Cuzner and Fleetwood Varley.
Despite
this pantheon of names, and not wanting to divert attention from
his own brand identity, Liberty adopted a policy of not promoting
the names of the designers he used (with the notable exception of
Mary Watts). As a result Liberty became a byword for innovative
design.
This
combination of clever marketing combined with lower production costs
gave Liberty & Co a substantial commercial edge. Whilst attracting
derision from competitors such as Ashbee (he largely blamed Liberty
& Co's pandering to profit for the failure of The Guild of Handicrafts)
it was the cornerstone of their success.
It
is believed that the collaboration between Knox and the shop concluded
in 1912 and in many ways this marked the end of Liberty & Co's
place at the forefront of design. They continued producing Tudric
and Cymric into the 1930s but many of the new models were in-house
adaptations of earlier designs that lacked the finesse of the originals.
Towards
the twenties public tastes moved away from Arts & Crafts and
rather than trying to innovate, Liberty's metalware became simpler
and more traditional.
In
1917
Arthur Lasenby Liberty died and with him went the company's pioneering
spirit. It is surely a fitting tribute to the great man that a century
after the release of his silver and pewter range, the Cymric and
Tudric wares are prized more highly now than they ever have
been.
|
From
a small shop, opened in 1875 on the corner of Regent Street, liberty
was to popularise an idiom now known and revered world wide simply
as "Liberty style". 
