Warner and Sons, Braintree, Essex. Founded in 1870 as Warner, Sillet & Ramm by Benjamin Warner (1828-1908) to take advantage of the effects of the Franco-Prussian war on the French silk industry. Warner's family had been involved in the silk industry since the seventeenth century, and the output of Warners was largely traditional seventeenth- and eighteenth-century patterns. Warner, however, was very interested in the movement to improve contemporary design, and he immediately bought designs from the renowned Owen Jones. Other designers engaged by Warner's included B. J .Talbert, Walter Crane, E. W. Godwin, G C Haité and the Silver Studio. The firm supplied Liberty & Co., Collinson & Lock and Debenham & Freebody. [Arts & Crafts Textiles in Britain.]
Examples of Warner's Textile Designs
- Sutherland (by Owen Jones)
- Nipon (by Owen Jones)
- Italian (by Owen Jones)
- Sultan (by Owen Jones)
- Large Syringa (by E. H. Godwin)
- Fruits and Foliage by B. J. Talbert
- Dragonfly attributed to B. J. Talbert
- Waterlililies attributed to the Silver Studio
References
Arts & Crafts Textiles in Britain. Exhibition Catalogue. The Fine Art Society in Association with Francesca Galloway, nd.
Last modified January 2000