Inspired by Barbara’s legacy, young designers take wing-by Rahul Jacob

This month, canvases at Barefoot’s art gallery have been replaced by handloom cloth in many colours. Its younger designers, while staying true to founder Barbara Sansoni’s legacy, have reimagined chairs, cushion covers, wall hangings and rugs with a little help from artists they are inspired by, ranging from J.M.W. Turner to Yayoi Kusama.

The living room, featuring the work of Poorni Wijesinghe and Binara Marasinghe, is a homage to Piet Mondrian, especially a floor rug in brilliant yellow, royal blue and white squares that the late Dutch-born abstract artist would have applauded. Across from it is a single-seater chair in such a profusion of colour patches that it seems determined to make the point that salvaging cloth must also be an art form. On the windowsill is a recreation of red heliconia flowers, those Jurassic Park-features of this gigantic flower tamed in the manner Barefoot does with its soft toy collection with equally fine detailing and colour.

Step into a house of many colours: Reimagined chairs, cushion covers, wall hangings and more

On the day I visited this exhibition called House, a tourist decided she wanted to buy the flowers and take them home right away. It was an example of what this exhibition also achieves: by making Barefoot’s wild Fauvist colours that we might wear as a scarf or a sarong more accessible, it domesticates them for everyday use in our homes.

At the entrance to the gallery, where the jazz band usually sets up on Sundays, Sophia Sansoni had set up a study in muted colours with wonderful touches such as blue glass Milk of Magnesia bottles, an old Ayurvedic Apothecary cupboard and a multi-pocket handloom wall organiser, which recalled the extraordinary artist’s apron used by Barbara Sansoni to keep her crayons and paint brushes.

Homage to Mondrian: The living room display

The living cum dining room on the ground floor is a riot of colour quite literally; a redda by the dining table by Vidurangi Gunarathne is called Fire. It seemed inspired by our vision of the sun as a ball of fire or a depiction of a forest fire induced by extreme heat. The Mondrian-inspired squares in the living area are a world away from the decor around the dining table — done by Vidurangi with Tharushi Wijerathne — with black tablemats and red and orange cushion covers. The room is in effect split by three Barbara Sansoni reddas in verdant green and lime green, one with pink and red flowers beguilingly strewn at the bottom of this mobile cloth art installation.

A showpiece is the more than six foot in height, very Barefoot chandelier that is hung above the large staircase leading up to the first floor. A cylindrically shaped steel frame is in effect used as a vertical stationary loom with threads criss-crossing its entirety. The top and the bottom of this artwork – it’s hard to imagine it fitting in a modern home – feature bobbins of different colours of thread. A large bulb within it illuminates the staircase, the nod to utility making it seem even more remarkable.

A study in muted colours with a touch of vibrant blue. Pix by Eshan Fernando

Upstairs is a children’s room inspired by Kusama. In that space, however, the standout is Barbara Sansoni’s Joseph Technicoloured robe styled baby elephant that is a couple of feet tall. It might even push up alarmingly low birth rates across the developed world if it were sold there as more couples might be encouraged to have children.

Across from it is a wonderful conservatory designed by Shaunagh Aluwihare. In calm pastels and cream, this is a departure from the rest of the show, especially the chessboard rug in a black and white. The Italian-styled rattan chairs are elegant and comfortable, the handloom cloth potholders a unique and lighter take on encasing a potted plant in ceramics. A delicate cream coloured cloth hanging, the display note tells us, was designed by Barbara Sansoni for a Geoffrey Bawa bedroom decades ago. On occasion, the information panels explaining the designers’ intentions and inspirations are overly verbose, sometimes detracting from the show.

Departure from the rest: A calming corner

Barefoot this year is 60 years old and still works within the rules its founder, who died in April 2022, established. As little wastage of cloth as possible is one such rule and using square-ruled notebooks at the initial stage of design with pencil crayons another. At Barefoot, computer-aided design (CAD) remains something akin to a swear word uttered at a gracious if wildly colourful dinner table. “We are following all of Barbara’s rules, but the designers are young and should be allowed to fly,” says Nelun Harasgama, who heads design at Barefoot. “We shouldn’t keep them in a box. If Barbara were here, she would have approved.”

The charm of this exhibition is that Sansoni is always present even as Barefoot’s young designers strike out in fresh directions.

“House” is at the Barefoot Gallery all through September, until the 29th.

The showpiece work of art: The striking threadwork chandelier