Books
John Fowler: Prince of Decorators
The full-blown country-house look
Martin WoodFrances Lincoln, 208pp, £35,
Deborah Devonshire
It is not given to many for their surname to be turned into an adjective immediately recognisable by a section of society. ‘Fowlerised’ meant a house transformed by John Fowler to his (and the owners’) taste.
In spite of having known John for many years, I had little idea of the extent of his work and influence until I read this book. Dedicated to looking and learning, he dealt with all dates and styles of buildings through scholarship and his prodigious memory.
He was born in 1906, a one-off in his family with artistic talents that took him to painting furniture for Peter Jones in 1934, earning £4 a week. He was refused a rise in wages so he and his colleagues downed brushes and set up on their own.
They struggled on till 1938 when John joined Lady Colefax. Twice his age and a fashionable decorator with a shop in Mayfair, Sybil Colefax knew the women who wanted to do something more than Syrie Maugham’s everlasting white and mushroom, which had ruled during the early Thirties. Fashion had moved on in its inexorable way and John seized the opportunity.
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Philip Webb
January 24th, 2008 6:47pmI bought the wonderful book - actually I asked my sister to buy it for my Christmas present!! - and loved it. John Fowler was a true design genius who created something the rest of the world has tried to copy but never managed to get quite right - the English Country House.