Ptolemy Mann - interview


Weaver and colour consultant Ptolemy Mann has bridged what to many is a chasm between craft and industrial design, with large-scale commissions from the NHS and Johnson, the latter working in collaboration to present a mural at the Clerkenwell Design Week.


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Words by Emily Martin

September. And deSpite the hints of autumn, it's the season of new beginnings; children are back to school in their new year groups, hoards of young people make their way to a new college or university as other students prepare to head on back to campus to partake in the Fresher's Week festivities.

The latest clutch of graduates will also be starting their new beginnings as they embark on a career. The jump between education and industry is daunting enough, but what about bridging those chasms faced when at a career cross-roads? I met up with artist and colour expert Ptolemy Mann on the first day of Clerkenwell Design Week (CDW), to talk about her own experiences of industry leaps and (happy) landings, with Johnson Tiles while she was showcasing the company's new Prismatics range. (Mann and Johnson Tiles had collaborated to create a mural - Prismatic Landscape - detailing the range's colour palette, as also selected by her.)

Mann’s facade at the Clerkenwell design Week’s Farmiloe Building. The installation was part of the CDW Presents series. Photo: Profile and prismatic landscape images (CDW) – Tim Ainsworth,
Mann's facade at the Clerkenwell design Week's Farmiloe Building. The installation was part of the CDW Presents series. Photo: Profile and prismatic landscape images (CDW) - Tim Ainsworth,

Sitting by the mural installed near the Design Factory's entrance at the Farmiloe Building in Clerkenwell, part of the CDW Presents series, I'm a little baffled to see how a former RCA textiles student has come to be working with a tile manufacturer. 'I am actually a weaver by profession and I hand weave and dye one-off, large-scale, contextual pieces,' she tells me. 'I met up with Johnson Tiles about 18 months ago to do a bathroom project and we really liked working together, so they asked me to create a mural for their CDW stand. I think they really like that I'm not a ceramicist and so I wasn't so tied in to what tiles are about, but was looking at the project from a colour perspective.'

Mann’s Red Vortex pile rug 4 Mann’s work at the CAA bathroom, in Johnson Tiles chromatic Ikat tile. Photo: Alun Callender
Mann's Red Vortex pile rug 4 Mann's work at the CAA bathroom, in Johnson Tiles chromatic Ikat tile. Photo: Alun Callender

Mann met Johnson Tiles by way of the Contemporary Applied Arts (CAA) organisation, a charity set up 'to promote and champion British craft' she joined 18 years ago. She says the CAA played a key role in establishing her link between art and industrial design: 'It's an organisation that represents applied artists who have...being trying to link up artists with industry. It was through Brian Kennedy and Peter Ting, who curate a lot of exhibitions for CAA as well as being ceramicists, who knew Johnson Tiles and wanted to set up a project with it to see if any members would be interested.'

After reading the project's brief, which was to revamp the bathrooms at the CAA gallery in London, Mann applied for and won the commission. That she had never done a project like this before appealed to her as well as Johnson Tiles. 'I do work as a colour consultant and I have done some architectural facades for hospitals and schools,' she says. 'I thought it could be an interesting lead in to more industrial design commissions, as I love architecture and working at large scale.'

Mann’s Red Vortex pile rug 4 Mann’s work at the CAA bathroom, in Johnson Tiles chromatic Ikat tile. Photo: Alun Callender
Mann's Red Vortex pile rug 4 Mann's work at the CAA bathroom, in Johnson Tiles chromatic Ikat tile. Photo: Alun Callender

In 2006 Mann was hired by the NHS as a lead artist for a Nottinghamshire hospital project. Specifying 40 colours for the external facade of the Kings Mill Hospital in Newark, and approaching the project as she would weaving a piece of art, Mann describes the experience as 'creating artwork on the landscape'. Using different materials, including glass, transparent film and powder-coated metal, helped her 'make the jump from handcraft artisan to working in a more commercial way', she says.

Mann says that her colour knowledge has also played a significant part in linking art, craft and the design industry. Colour plays a prominent role her work, which she says started in her undergraduate days. Prior to studying at the RCA, Mann did a degree in textile design at Central Saint Martins and extensively studied colour theory. 'What was very special about the CSM course was doing colour theory, one day a week in the first year,' she says. 'That was unique at the time and, needless to say, it put me in very good stead.'

Tiles

After establishing herself as both artist and craftswoman, Mann realised her talent and knowledge of colour filled a gap in the creative market and she set out to become a colour consultant - another quality that appealed to then new client Johnson Tiles.
'Colour seemed to be the natural thing for me, so I could also branch out into consultancy work. Meeting up with Johnson Tiles, they were looking for a colour consultant who knew how to design architectural installations. I think they thought they would have to get three different people!'

Now finding herself in this new and unique position, Mann says her craft background helps to evolve her colour knowledge, which brings in new work. Her 'hands on with colour' approach appeals to a number of companies that favour hiring an 'artist' with expert colour knowledge over a 'designer' with little (or no) experience.

The facade at the Kings Mill Hospital, Newark, a commission from the NHS
The facade at the Kings Mill Hospital, Newark, a commission from the NHS.

'A lot of designers don't actively mix paint or dye by hand, and I still learn and surprise myself when I go into the dye lab,' says Mann. 'It always amazes me how many designers don't know anything about colour theory. I find it bizarre.'

Asked whether crafts people and artists overlook the other creative industries, or whether they should remain more segregated Mann comments: 'I think it's really important to have that crossover with craft and industry. And I think it's really important to keep the craftsmanship, but be able to create work that is commercial and viable. The climate is changing and companies want things that are more "hand crafted", and I've found the transformation surprisingly enjoyable.'








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