In anticipation of its 150th anniversary, Liberty debuted FuturLiberty at Fuorisalone, with interiors and fashion collections.
Liberty invited couturier and interior designer Federico Forquet to collaborate on the creation of FuturLiberty. The collection began with Forquet issuing a challenge to the Liberty designers: experiment and develop Liberty’s archetypal Arts and Crafts designs. In researching the archive, home to more than 50,000 designs spanning from the 1880s to present day, the team were drawn to the experimental work of famed Liberty designer, Bernard Nevill. The team were inspired by Nevill’s love for the 20th-century avant-garde art, specifically taking cues from the rebellious Italian Futurists and their English contemporaries the Vorticists.
FuturLiberty reinterprets these designs to present a new collection that offers a refreshed intensity and loud optimism through dense brush strokes, delicate lines, and playful collage. The geometric patterns within the collection are composed of marks made by hand – not only instilling a contemporary take on these typically regular shapes, but also introducing a liveliness and rhythm into the designs. These artistic impressions were transformed into designs that can repeat with flow and balance across a body, or introduce vibrancy into an interior space.
Whilst taking inspiration from Liberty’s archives, FuturLiberty also draws on Forquet’s home in southern Tuscany. The Liberty Design team visited his home – surrounded by a setting rich with architecture, flora, and fauna and was inspired to create a colour story that encapsulates the colourful landscape.
FuturLiberty has 17 interior fabric designs, in various finishes including embroidery and weaves. The interiors fabrics will be available in a home accessories collection comprising 26 cushion designs and five throws.
