2018/6

Cockerel,

Cockerel, My Secret Tips for Hen Keeping

Michael O'Connell (Artist)

Wall hanging entitled 'Cockerel' designed, painted and dyed by Michael O'Connell, under the name Mael Fabrics. The blue rayon block printed panel depicts a cockerel in a farmyard. It was made circa 1950. Michael O'Connell worked with rayon and used a combination of batik and resist dyeing techniques to create his designs. He used specially formulated resists and dyes which were piped and dyed onto mordanted fabric then the whole fabric was dyed.

1 wall hanging: rayon textile

MERL Miscellaneous note - TEXTILES AS ART: FROM THE COLLECTION OF PAUL REEVES // 23 FEBRUARY 2017 // LOT 160 [§] MICHAEL O'CONNELL (1898-1976) FOR MAEL FABRICS // BLOCK-PRINTED WALL HANGING PANEL, CIRCA 1950 depicting a cockerel in a farmyard, wax resist printing on rayon, signed MAEL // 170 x 139cm // Estimate ... // Note: Michael O'Connell used specially formulated resists and dyes which were painted and piped onto mordanted fabric, then the whole work, once dry was dyed. After the Second World War, such newly developed techniques were used by O'Connell to create the Festival of Britain wall hangings., Letter, Lesley Jackson to Isabel Hughes, n.d. [February 2017] – '... I've had a quick look through the Festival of Britain section of the Michael O'Connell book. I can't see any reference to this particular hanging, but it may well be one of the preliminary samples for the Festival of Britain pieces, as you suggest. ...', Letter, Adam Schoon to Isabel Hughes, 13 February 2017 - '... I have inspected the sale entry and photographs of this rare textile item. The colours are very well preserved and vibrant and there is no evidence of damage. Textiles by O’Connell rarely appear on the market, and this piece demonstrates how the artist was able to develop special textile printing techniques, indeed as were ultimately used for The Festival of Britain hangings. Interestingly this hanging incorporates some decorative elements that appear in The Festival of Britain hangings, such as the farm buildings. ...', Email, Sally-Anne Huxtable to Eleanor McGrath, 16 February 2017 - 'Isabel Hughes of the English Museum of Rural Life has asked me to view and report on the Michael O’Connell wall hanging which is in the Lyon and Turnbull ‘Textiles as Art’ sale on 23rd February (Lot 160). // I viewed the textile yesterday and can report that it is in very good condition, particularly for a hand-dyed and printed textile of its age. The textile is also ‘signed’ with O’Connell’s printed mark ‘Mael’. The colours are still very bright and the only real ‘flaws’ are a few uneven areas and splashes of colour, which I would judge to be a result of the original hand- dying and block printing processes. There are one or two tiny flaws in the weave of the viscose textile, but these may well be original also. Even if not they don’t detract from the originality and vibrancy of the piece. I would say that this is a lovely smaller example of O’Connell’s work, the style and subject matter of which would very much complement the English Museum of Rural Life’s existing holdings by this artist. ...', MERL miscellaneous note: V&A Application Acquisition Statement, MERL miscellaneous note: Art Fund Auction Acquisition Application

Much Hadham

1950-01-01 - 1950-12-31

Painted, Dyed