Dorothy Carr studied the process in her husband’s Francis Carr\u2019s classes at the London College of Printing and Graphic Art. She found the direct and painterly qualities of the medium so conducive to her own working methods that the exploration lasted well into the 70\u2019s expanding into prints, textiles, wallpapers, collage, book art and painting.<\/p>\n
Dorothy Carr took part in the first UK exhibition of serigraphs at the ‘Folio Society,<\/em>‘ London and her first solo show at the ICA in 1970 was entirely inspired by the process. She says \u201cit lent itself beautifully to my chosen subject \u2018The Human Aura\u2019<\/em>, on account of the ease with which it could create vibrating lines which could be overprinted adinfinitum\u201d.<\/p>\n Dorothy Carr\u2019s earliest prints made use of opaque overlays of pigment as in \u2018Green Bottle with Onions\u2019<\/em> (1950) and \u2018Night Tide\u2019<\/em> (1959). As she explains \u201calthough the hands on look that came with printing through organdie was slow and hazardous, it revealed, by chance, a bonus; misaligned printing of the same stencil gave interference patterns similar to the ones that can be achieved today through computer imagining\u201d. Such was the accessibility of the medium, that she could take contemporary events like the then extraordinary space projects and make a \u2018space\u2019 print there and then – as with \u2018The First Satellite\u2019<\/em> (1968). Discovering \u2018photostencils\u2019 and colour blending led to adventurous large-scale works which she printed onto canvas. Sometimes this was combined with painting. Her work reflected a mixture of influences upon her life at that time, including popular cultural images.<\/p>\n During the late 50\u2019s and early 60\u2019s, the government established Cotton Board promoted industrial and interior design, which became an ever expanding and lucrative market in the UK. Dorothy Carr was part of the influential group of artists who were to change the direction of textile design during the 60\u2019s. Entrepreneur Jack Worthington, director of interior design at Heal\u2019s Fabrics Ltd, was looking for young British artists who could bring a new dynamic to the textile industry to run in parallel with it\u2019s already established classic designs. He was particularly taken by the vitality and novelty of Dorothy Carr\u2019s prints at the Folio Society, London. He bought one to include in his contemporary collection, later shown at the Brussels World Fair, 1958. Entitled \u2018Oak\u2019,<\/em> it broke new ground and caused a stir in textile circles.\u2019 The Daily Telegraph\u2019 design critic wrote, \u201cIt expresses the modern trend of \u2018tachism\u2019 or action painting. It is a perfect picture of the bark of an oak tree showing strength and almost the movement of the years in its trunk.\u201d<\/p>\n Dorothy Carr was instrumental in changing the method of transferring images photographically onto cloth, through the screen printing process, which in turn changed the mould of traditional textile production technology. She produced \u2018Moir\u00e9\u2019<\/em> \u201964, based on marbled paper, as part of \u2018Time Present\u2019<\/em> fabric collection commissioned by Hull Traders Ltd. It was most probably the first halftone textile image of its kind and as such was later acquired by the Victoria & Albert Museum, Department of Modern Textiles.<\/p>\n Other commissions include \u2018Exeter\u2019<\/em> for Exeter University by textile firm Primavera and a number of bold wallpaper designs for pioneering manufacturers Coles Wallpaper Ltd in 1964.\u00a0Further examples of her textiles can be found in the Victoria & Albert Museum, Department of Modern Textiles.<\/p>\n By the 80\u2019s, using her own recycling techniques, Dorothy Carr had moved into creating \u2018book art\u2019, handmade paper installations, reliefs and collages. Her \u2018book art\u2019 series was exhibited nationally and internationally and is represented in the Victoria & Albert Museum. In 1996 she formed \u2018The Paper Group\u2019<\/em> to promote the imaginative use of handmade paper and recyclables and to bring awareness to this very basic everyday material. The Group exhibited and successfully toured a number of innovative shows and events.<\/p>\n Dorothy Carr is now engaged in \u2018art for well being\u2019 as she firmly believes in the power of art to promote healing and change. As a parallel involvement she has also started on a series of paintings concerned with \u2018energy\u2019 and is researching into some of the most exciting recent cosmic events.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dorothy Carr studied the process in her husband’s Francis Carr\u2019s classes at the London College of Printing and Graphic Art. She found the direct and painterly qualities of the medium so conducive to her own working methods that the exploration lasted well into the 70\u2019s expanding into prints, textiles, wallpapers, collage, book art and painting. 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