Rare items up for sale at three day festival celebrating iconic Victorian designer

A rare Aesthetic Movement full roll of wallpaper, in the style of Christopher Dresser, is to feature as the centre piece of a selling exhibition as part of DresserFest in Middlesbrough next month.

Along with the roll of wallpaper, the selling exhibition will also feature 20 Ault Pottery pieces to accompany a display of the Ault Pattern book which will be on loan from the Dorman Museum.

A portion of the sales will be donated to the Christopher Dresser Society to help cultivate interest in the eminent Victorian designer.

In addition, New York lawyer and avid Dresser collector Lawrence Larose, and his wife Janet, recently made a generous donation to the Christopher Dresser Society and will become founding patrons. Lawrence is passionate about developing Dresser research and is an admirer of the work being carried out at Teesside University to preserve and enhance his legacy.

'The work of Christopher Dresser was truly ahead of its time and is incredibly influential. For me, he is the most important designer of the Victorian age,” said Lawrence.

'I’m delighted to be able to pledge this money to help support the fantastic research and scholarly activity of Teesside University and the Christopher Dresser Society. DresserFest is a perfect example of what can be achieved when people come together to bring the work of Dresser to the attention of the wider public.'

DresserFest, organised by the Christopher Dresser Society, Teesside University and the Dorman Museum, is a series of events, including exhibitions, gallery tours, lectures and workshops, taking place from 2 to 4 July.

Highlights of the festival include behind the scenes tours at the Dorman Museum, Dresser-themed talks at mima, an international line-up of guest speakers for a Day-Symposium at Teesside University and the chance to view an unseen pattern book from Ault Pottery which could shed new light on the work of Christopher Dresser.

The wallpaper to feature in the selling exhibition has been in the ownership of a Cumbrian dealer for several years and featured at the launch of the Christopher Dresser Society at Teesside University in 2013. It is thought, by a leading expert, to have been produced by William Cooke of Leeds, some of whose designs are held in the National Archives in London and are known to be by Christopher Dresser. The exhibition also features 20 Ault Pottery pieces to accompany the Ault Exhibition and there will be a significant showing of Linthorpe Pottery which was made in Middlesbrough. Other ceramics include Minton, Old Hall, Brownfield and Torquay wares. There are also examples of Dresser silverwares and furniture. Prices range from £30 to £3,000.

Paul Denison, Principal Lecturer in Teesside University’s School of Arts & Media and Chair of the Christopher Dresser Society, said: “We are delighted to have an exhibition of Dresser-related artefacts which the public can come and see, and which they can buy. There is something for every pocket and every level of collector, ranging from £30 to £3000.

'The various national and regional dealers who have contributed to the exhibition have generously agreed that a portion of sales will be donated to the Christopher Dresser Society, which will enable it to cultivate more interest in the great man and to promote further scholarship around his lesser known designs.'

Christopher Dresser is amongst the most influential designers of the modern period and stands proudly alongside William Morris and Charles Rennie Mackintosh in terms of how he changed the visual landscape of Britain. His most prolific work was in textiles, carpets, ceramics and wallpaper, but he is much admired and probably best known today for his metal wares, including claret jugs, tea services, serving dishes, toast racks, candlesticks and cruet sets.

All the items in the selling exhibition are on display in Teesside University’s Constantine Gallery from 2 to 16 July. People can call in between 10.00am and 3.00pm, Monday to Friday, and bid for items. For more information about exactly what will be up for sale, contact p.denison@tees.ac.uk.

School of Arts & Media factfile Teesside is the only University in the Tees Valley offering art and design courses – everything from traditional pathways to new and innovative programmes in indie games, fashion and textiles.

All courses are based on the town centre campus where there has recently been £250m investment and international art gallery mima is now part of the University.

Graduates have gone on to top positions in companies such as Aston Martin, Philips, F1, Dreamworks and Marvel Comics. Contemporary partners include Dance City and Hyper Island.

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Find out more about DresserFest and all the different events taking place