Sir Brian Clarke’s Carmelite Tapestries

BROWSE CATALOGUE     REQUEST A VALUATION     CONTACT A SPECIALIST

Clarke (1953–2025) was a distinguished British painter, architectural artist, designer, and printmaker, internationally recognised for his large-scale stained glass and mosaic works, as well as for his contributions to symbolic painting, stage design, and collaborations with leading architects.

Clarke’s practice, particularly in the field of architectural and autonomous stained glass, was characterised by sustained technical innovation and conceptual experimentation. Working frequently at a monumental scale, he expanded the expressive and structural possibilities of the medium. Among his most notable contributions were the development of lead-free stained glass and the introduction of a markedly intensified pointillist technique in glass. In addition, he produced sculptural stained glass works that paralleled the formal logic of collage, often employing lead as a primary material. These innovations have been interpreted as extending the medium toward two conceptual extremes: complete transparency and total opacity, thereby redefining the aesthetic and material boundaries of stained glass as an art form.

^{▲ Sir Brian Clarke (British, 1953-2025), 'The Carmelite' tapestry (£10,000-15,000)}

Carmelite House, formerly the headquarters of Associated Newspapers, was a high-technology architectural project completed in the 1980s by Norman Foster in collaboration with Tim Kempster. Within this context, Clarke was commissioned to create an integrated artistic scheme for the building’s central atrium and riverside façade. His design comprised five monumental cut-pile tapestries, together measuring approximately 3,365 square feet, alongside a series of stained glass windows installed along both the Thames-facing elevation and Carmelite Street.

Completed in 1992, the tapestries were conceived as a vertical visual narrative linking the multiple levels of the atrium. Rather than employing stained glass for the roof, Clarke proposed the use of textile as a medium capable of articulating spatial continuity and visual engagement across floors. The tapestries introduced colour, movement, and interpretive depth to the interior, transforming the atrium into a dynamic and immersive environment. Complementary stained glass lancet windows along the façade further reinforced the relationship between interior and exterior space.

^{▲ Sir Brian Clarke (British, 1953-2025), 'The Carmelite' tapestry (£8,000-12,000)}

Following the demolition of the building in 2013, the tapestries were removed and subsequently acquired by the collector Richard Collins. It is from his estate that these important works are now offered, representing a rare opportunity to acquire a major architectural commission and piece of London history by one of Britain’s most innovative contemporary artists.

Tuesday 21 April | 10am

design@sworder.co.uk | 01279 817778

BROWSE THE CATALOGUE