Categories / Art and Photography

Festival of Britain print by Lizzie Allen

Festival of Britain

Wallpaper designer Lizzie Allen has been commissioned to produce this Festival of Britain print which ties in with the Royal Festival Hall's 60th anniversary next year.

Allen's work frequently draws inspiration from 1950s illustrations, such as with her City Gents wallpaper and this design – and subject matter – reflects that interest. The reduced colour palette of yellow, red and grey creates a period feel and draws attention to the gleaming new Festival Hall in the background. There's also an atmosphere of fun – from the aeroplane in the sky, to the brass band, to the 60th birthday balloon. 

The print is on a large scale, at 70 x 100cm and is limited to a run of 60 copies. Each print costs £250. 

Buy it from the Southbank Centre

Categories / Architecture, Art and Photography

Hayward 2 print by Paul Catherall

Hayward pring

Cast your mind back and you may remember Paul Catherall's print of the Trellick Tower. He's now taken on another iconic London building with this limited edition print called Hayward 2.  

The Hayward Gallery opened in July 1968 as part of the Southbank Centre and its construction is typical of Brutalist architecture. Here the gallery is shown using bold and bright colours more associated with the art shown inside the gallery than with its grey concrete exterior, making it a pretty attractive piece of art for your walls too. 

The lino print is limited to 75 prints with each print costing £195. 

Buy it from the Southbank Centre

Categories / Design and Interiors

Modern living stationery set by SORT

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We've featured quite a few of the Southbank Centre's collaborations recently and this new Modern Living stationery set, from SORT is another interesting addition to their range. 

SORT stands for Society of Revisionist Typographers and, as their name suggests, they use typography and printing techniques of the past but marry them up with a contemporary design aesthetic. The inspiration for this set comes from the Festival of Britain with the designs on the stationery has a very 50s look. 

Each set contains 30 sheets of notepaper, 8 notelets and 20 envelopes, all hand-printed and kept in a stylish presentation box. The set costs £15.

Buy it from the Southbank Centre

Categories / Bags, Design and Interiors

Michelle Mason’s 1950s-inspired bags for the Southbank Centre

Michelle Mason bag

Of the many Michelle Mason designs we've featured on this site, you may remember the 1930s-inspired tote bags she designed for the London Transport Museum. Well, she's put her skills to good use again for another cultural institution, this time drawing on the Fifties for these bags for the Southbank Centre

The seed pod design is typically 1950s and fits in well with the rest of the Southbank Centre's products that are inspired by that era. The bag comes in the choice of purple or blue and costs £15. 

Buy them online

Categories / Design and Interiors

1950s-inspired Acoustics bowl by Gillies Jones

Acoustics bowl

The Southbank Centre is again drawing on its design history in commissioning new products. Earlier in the year we showed you the Net and Ball rug while this Acoustics bowl by Gillies Jones is also inspired by the same iconic building. 

Its pattern is based on a 1950s Ulster Weavers Tapestry that was produced for the Royal Festival Hall. The look of the design is transformed depending on which of the gold or red colour options you prefer, though both are sympathetic to the colours of the building.

This interesting piece costs £150. 

Buy it online