Liberty department store and Archibald Knox

The London-based Liberty store is widely known for its close association with art and culture. The store is proud to support young designers at the start of their careers. Many of today’s famous brands have been born thanks to Liberty’s support. At the beginning of the 20th century, the store played a significant role in popularizing the British Art Nouveau style, sometimes referred to as Liberty style.

The store was founded in 1875 by Arthur Lasenby Liberty of Chesham. With a £2,000 loan from his future father-in-law, he rented half of the store at 218a Regent Street with three employees. The store sold jewelry, fabrics and art objects from the countries of the East. A year and a half later, he bought the building completely, and then gradually bought up the neighboring property on Regent Street. Together with Arthur Godwin Liberty, they began to produce their own clothing and fabrics. The store has become London’s most fashionable shopping destination. Oscar Wilde, a regular customer of the store, called Liberty’s a resort for the sophisticated shopper.

By the end of the 19th century, Liberty had established strong relationships with young English designers, many of whom were drawn to the Arts and Crafts movement. Archibald Knox (1864-1933), perhaps the most famous artist who created Art Nouveau designs for the Liberty. The company became associated with this new style, to the extent that the firm’s name became synonymous with English Art Nouveau.

From 1900 to 1904, Knox produced over 400 designs for Liberty of London, most notably the Cymric and Tudric series of silver and pewter pieces. Cymric’s catalog says, “The special thing about this development is that it completely breaks with design conventions.” These works lived up to Liberty’s motto: “The production of useful and beautiful objects at prices affordable to all classes.”