I just stumbled on an interesting fact as I was writing another art blog about my art being on duvet and quilts featuring the rather new crisp looking white Hindley Street set.

I was amazed that it seems to be a Swedish invention: my home country and here is a great article by Kate Watson-Smyth which was published in The Independent this week.

THE SECRET HISTORY OF:THE DUVET (by Kate Watson-Smyth)

“It was the 1950s, before the halcyon days of the swinging Sixties. Sir Terence Conran was in Sweden. With a girl. And he found himself lying under a strange cover that was a bit like an eiderdown but with no sheets or blankets between him and it.

He enquired casually what it was and was informed that it was a Slumberdown quilt. A few years later, he would be the first person to sell duvets in Britain in his new shop on the King’s Road in west London.

Habitat opened on 11 May 1964. It was selling a lifestyle and stocked new and interesting homewares – the chicken brick, the wok and, of course, the duvet. When the catalogue was launched in 1966, it became a coffee-table book in its own right and the store expanded rapidly throughout the country.

Sir Terence recalls: “People do credit me with bringing the duvet to Britain. I had been in Sweden in the 1950s and was given a duvet to sleep under. I probably had a girl with me and I thought this was all part of the mood of the time – liberated sex and easy living. It was wonderful that when you came to make your bed, it was just a couple of shakes.”

You have to admit that it was rather sweet that after his liberated sex, he even bothered to think about making the bed. Anyway, the continental quilt, as it was more usually known until the mid-1970s, wasn’t an instant best-seller. James Greig, the assistant producer of If Walls Could Talk, an intimate history of the home (to be shown on BBC 4 later this year), says: “When they first came out, people were very reluctant to give up their sheets and blankets, which might have been wedding presents. But the duvet was really pioneered by the housewives who loved the idea that it was so quick to make the bed. Habitat even had an advertising slogan: ‘the 10-second bed’. I think they had a few in some stores to see how they went and the advertising tended to include a series of illustrative pictures so people could see how they worked.”

Greig has been unable to pinpoint the very first appearance of the duvet, but says it was used mainly in Scandinavia and the colder alpine countries.

To start with, Habitat sold more single duvets than doubles as they were initially regarded as something that was good for children. But gradually they became accepted by everyone. Today, it’s practically impossible to find anyone who sleeps under blankets any more.”

ART ON BEDDING

I of course remember growing up in Sweden and sleeping under a quilt cover (duvet) so it makes me extra happy and proud to be having my art shown in this way by ARTnBED.  Just to make the connection a little more amazing for me was that the name duvet is what they were originally called in Australia (the country I know live in) now for the most part in Australia we refer to them as a Doona and the cover a Quilt cover.  Here are a few more links to see the other blogs and pictures of the bedding available.  I hope you like it. 140 ART n BED and 188. ARTnBED and the painting Pottering at the Port and here is ARTnBED website where all their artists and bedding products can be viewed.

Happy painting and sculpting to you all.

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

I am so happy to finally be able to announce that my 3^rd set of duvet (quilt covers) for ARTnBED is finally on the market.  It is called Pottering at the Port and the original painting was bought by the Country Arts Trust of South Australia at an exhibition a while back.  Now the wonderful Lior Rapaport and his company ARTnBED have chosen it for their new collection.

Lior writes a blog on his ARTnBED website and this is what he wrote about initially finding my artworks;

NAIVE ART IS GOOD FOR YOU

“I have been interested in art ever since I lived in Paris.  I spent many winters’ weekends in its great museums carrying a 6 month baby when her mother needed some sleep.  It was then when I started to develop my own taste. Impressionism, contemporary and modern paintings were my favourites, I love colourful paintings that inspire and make you happy.

A while back I landed on MOMA’s FB page to see what’s new – and my eyes popped out!  I was enchanted with the colours, details, joy that filled every corner of a naive painting by artist Marie Jonsson-Harrison from Australia.  It was the first time I saw Naive art and I was hooked.

It appears that in the past Naive artists were outsiders, not in the mainstream and not taken seriously or considered professional.  Therefore most of them painted for themselves.  It was only about 100 years ago that Naive art was accepted as an artistic mode of art.

Take my word for it – there is no art as raw, honest and engaging as Naive Art!”

Lior writes a great blog and with lots of interesting stories about his family, life, travels and of course art which you may enjoy to have a look at.

If you are interested to find out how this all eventuated when my first quilt (duvet) cover called Hindley Street was released here is a blog about that 140 ART n BED as well as a page on my website where I also wrote about it and now I will have to go and update it and add the 2 new designs there as well.

CHILDLIKE INNOCENT ART

When I paint and sculpt I enter into another world and imagine myself as part of the artwork perhaps that is what keeps me so happy and childlike, who knows?  Although my kids think sometimes I should act my age and hubbys always maintains its unbecoming for a 40+ woman to skip!  Lol but I don’t care I skip anyway – although I try not to do it in a crowded place, in case I get carted off and locked up!  Anyway when ARTnBED had decided to use my painting Pottering at the Port, Lior asked me to write a little “something” to put on his website about that and this was my thoughts;

“Sailing off from the Port to new adventures across the world and then returning to your loved ones waiting with open arms to embrace you.  This will be one of many wonderful dreams to be had when you sleep in “Pottering at the Port” by artist Marie Jonsson-Harrison.  Come on – come pottering around the port with us, perhaps have a snorkel or a drink at the local pub or just enjoy the buskers and the atmosphere.  Why not travel the seven seas in your dreams and wake up happy every morning without leaving your bedroom?”

So I leave you today with a quote from Lior Rapaport from ARTnBED who says;

“So with our duvet sets you can spend a day at the beach, a weekend in New York, enjoy the nightlife on Hindley Street and now… snorkel in bed.”

Till next time,

Love Marie xxxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

So here I am again, talking to myself lol, or maybe you, if you are out there somewhere.  So my artist website is finally up and running after its initial crash and then what seemed to be an eternity whilst it was being redesigned by Powwow.  And they did a very good job too I am pleased with it.  Hope you all use the E cards, free of course and add your own caption to a couple of them.  I have had fun thinking of captions myself, but I am sure you can think of plenty. You should find something there for every occasion.  We will be changing them from time to time to, like Christmas and Valentine’s Day etc.  This painting now a print and a portion of it is an E-card “The true colours of Hindley Street” is a favorite of mine.

HINDLEY STREET

I had so much fun painting this and it was bought by a psychiatrist and hangs in the waiting room, where it is very popular with the clients.  In my youth Hindley Street in Adelaide, South Australia was The place to hang out, we would often “crack a Hindley” and check out what was going down, lol.  You would find every type of person there, much like Kings Cross in Sydney.  The establishments offered everything from fast foods, to books, gelaterias, charity shops, pasta and pizza, nightclubs, dry cleaning, as well as adult only shops and strip joints.  People of every race and religion was there just to look or in the case of The Salvation Army and The Hare Krishna’s, there to convert some wayward souls.  Don’t know if it did them any good but it certainly was interesting.

So what a fantastic place for an artist to get inspired to paint a picture, there has been many reincarnations over the years and different shops have come and gone, but basically the feel of the street has remained the same.

If you are not familiar with the twisties packets in the pockets of the raincoat brigade, you may have to listen to the lyrics of Skyhooks’ Living in the Seventies Album’.  Lol, they were a major influence on me and a band I still love.  Mmm…Talking bands, AC/DC you ROCK!!

ARTnBED – ARTWORKS ON YOUR BED

There has actually been a very interesting development in this story as this painting Hindley Street has this year 2012 been made into quilt covers or duvet by ARTnBED.   So if you are interested in having art not only on your wall but also on the bed here is a couple of links for you to check out ArtNBed website and also my blog on the subject 140 ART n BED as well as the page ARTnBED.  Look out for more of my artworks, as the bedding range will be added too soon.

Here is another saying that amuses me…

God may have created man before woman but there is always a rough draft before the masterpiece.

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you too!

Much Love

Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.