Contemporary furniture and archival rug designs come together in an exhibition from Max Radford Gallery and Christopher Farr

Cutting-edge contemporary furniture and iconic archival rugs come together in ‘Progressive Permanence’, an exhibition for London Design Festival hosted by Max Radford Gallery and rug producer Christopher Farr. Works by emerging designers such as Lewis Kemmenoe and LS Gomma are paired with designs by acclaimed artists including Gary Hume and Louise Bourgeois, in an installation that shows how creativity across eras and geographies can come together to produce new interior dialogues.

Rugs meet contemporary furniture

Both Max Radford Gallery and Christopher Farr are keystones of design in east London, with the exhibition taking place in Farr’s Shoreditch studio, where custom rugs are developed in wool and silk. While Farr started out in 1988, setting out to preserve weaving traditions while exploring new design expressions, Radford established his eponymous gallery in 2020, seeking to platform London’s emerging talent combining craft with artistic experimentation. ‘Progressive Permanence’ marks their first collaborative exhibition.

Radford describes Christopher Farr as an ‘OG supplier’ of rugs in London, and the fact the company has worked with such illustrious artists ‘speaks volumes’, he says. For ‘Progressive Permanence’, Radford – who is an interior designer as well as gallerist – was invited to select pieces from Farr’s impressive archives to combine with furniture made by the contemporary names he represents.

‘All the rugs have been chosen because we love them as individual textiles, but also love how they sit with the works from our roster of designers,’ Radford says. ‘It also enables us to put our designers on a platform with respected names of the 20th century, which is a new for all of us. I think presenting these contemporary works alongside such heavy hitters reinforces our belief that the designers we work with can go on to become the respected names of the 21st century.’

In the exhibition, ‘Graywacke OffCut Chair’ (2024) from artist-designer Carsten in der Elst – a brutalist assemblage of discarded stone blocks – is paired with ‘Plate 111’, an abstract and geometric tapestry of colour by Bauhaus artist Gunta Stölzl.

An orange chair made from polyurethane rubber and industrial metal mesh by LS Gomma (‘XR Mesh 2-seater (orange)’, 2025) is placed against Louise Bourgeois’ ‘Has The Day Invaded The Night? Has the Night Invaded The Day?’ (2009), a striking text-based monochrome work by the artist, inspired by insomnia.

A new bench from designer Tessa Silva – who uses smocked textiles to create sculptural furniture pieces – is offset by a colourful rug from fashion designer Romeo Gigli featuring a painterly sun. And chairs from Lewis Kemmenoe’s recent ‘Quilted Fragments’ series, in which timber offcuts are crafted into wooden patchworks, are united with minimalist green rugs from the painter and sculptor Gary Hume, which depict hospital doors.

The rugs and furniture works are presented ‘as a foil to each other – matching or contrasting sensibilities’, says Radford. ‘The rugs create spaces in which they are in dialogue with the furniture, rather than simply being surfaces for them to sit on.’

For Radford, the show celebrates the designers his gallery works with – people that he builds long-lasting relationships with, transcending notions of market trends. ‘We believe these works will be the masterpieces of the future,’ he says, ‘and, much like the classics of the 20th century, they deserve to be visited and revisited to fully appreciate their beauty.’

‘Progressive Permanence’ takes place 15 to 20 September at Christopher Farr, 18 Calvin Street, London, E1 6HF