IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUMS PARTNER WITH PATTERNITY ON ‘THE FLEET OF DAZZLE’ PRODUCT RANGE September 2014

Imperial War Museums (IWM) proudly join forces with the world’s leading ‘cult pattern specialists’ PATTERNITY to create The Fleet of Dazzle, a new product range launching during London Design Festival in September 2014 and sailing into IWM shops in October 2014.

©PATTERNITY

Internationally renowned for their pioneering vision ‘to explore the positive power of pattern to inspire, engage and educate,’ PATTERNITY has collaborated with IWM, drawing inspiration from its extensive naval archives – to design a unique range of monochrome dazzle products to wear and use, boldly reimagining the iconic dazzle camouflage pattern painted to disguise and protect ships during the First World War.

In true PATTERNITY style the collaboration doesn’t stop there. PATTERNITY has also delved beneath the surface – using pattern as a tool to bring the spirit of the collaboration to life through a special film project: ‘Patterns of conflict + unity’ in collaboration with Film maker and Fashion Features Director at Pop, Lily Silverton.

The new film and product range will be launched at the IWM + PATTERNITY DAZZLE SHOP at LDF’s Design Junction in September 2014 – housed within a sculptural installation also designed by PATTERNITY.

Prepare to be well and truly dazzled!

©IWM

For further press information about The Fleet of Dazzle, please email [email protected] or call 020 7613 5867 image © IWM THE FLEET OF DAZZLE By IWM + PATTERNITY

PRODUCT COLLECTION High resolution images available on request

Dazzle Tote with internal pocket Dazzle Print Dazzle Tee 38x44cm 100% Cotton Limited Edition of 500 Unisex XS,S,M,L 100% Cotton £35 £100 £35

Dazzle Cushion Dazzle Wrap 20x20 inch 100% Cotton 3 Sheets of paper Dazzle T-Towel £40 £5 65x75cm 100% cotton £10

Dazzle Post Dazzle Document Wallet Dazzle Travel Postcard pack set of 10 33x25cm Oyster Card Holder £7 £35 £5

All products are manufactured in the United Kingdom.

For further press information about The Fleet of Dazzle, please email [email protected] or call 020 7613 5867 NOTES TO EDITORS

Preview ‘THE FLEET OF DAZZLE’ at London Design Junction, part of London Design Festival from 17th September 2014

The full collection will be available from IWM London, IWM North and HMS Belfast along with the website iwmshop.org.uk from Thursday 2 October 2014

Contact Information:

For further press information about: THE FLEET OF DAZZLE [email protected] 02076135867 IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUMS (IWM) Charlotte Sluter – [email protected] 0207 416 5420 IWM retail products Hilary Frolich – [email protected] 0208 866 2245 PATTERNITY [email protected] 02076135867

@PATTERNITWEET @I_W_M #FLEETOFDAZZLE #IWMPATTERNITY

MORE ABOUT DAZZLE

Wilkinson’s dazzling idea Aboard a train one wintry February morning in 1917, in the midst of Germany’s ferocious U-boat campaign, a young Lieutenant with the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve had a brainwave.That officer was the marine artist Norman Wilkinson. All too aware of the threat to Britain posed by Germany’s submarines, Wilkinson was convinced he could protect vulnerable Allied merchant ships by painting them. He of course knew that it was almost impossible to hide a ship in camouflage, so instead he sought to confuse rather than conceal.Wilkinson developed a radical camouflage scheme that used bold shapes and violent contrasts of colour to break up the distinctive profile of ship. This, Wilkinson believed, would make it harder for a submarine commander to gauge the course and speed of a vessel, so lessening the odds of a successful torpedo hit.

Painting the fleet Wilkinson’s Dazzle Section developed hundreds of camouflage schemes, mainly to protect the vessels of Britain’s vulnerable merchant fleet, but also for some warships and troopships. Each scheme had different patterns for the port and starboard sides of the ship. One vessel was the enormous ocean liner, Olympic – sister ship of the Titanic. Olympic was converted into a troop ship during the First World War and was painted in dazzle camouflage. She shows some of the techniques used by dazzle designers. Bold shapes at the bow and stern break up the form of the vessel. Angled lines suggest the distinctive smokestacks could be leaning in another direction. And curves on the hull could be mistaken for the shape of the ‘bow wave’ – created by water at the front of a fast-moving ship.

For further press information about The Fleet of Dazzle, please email [email protected] or call 020 7613 5867 MORE ABOUT DAZZLE

A colourful impact In 1917 people were astounded by the sight of harbours full of colourfully-painted ships. But some of the visual impact of Wilkinson’s camouflage is lost today in the black and white images we have of the First World War. The striking colours can still be seen on hundreds of model ships and schematic drawings held in IWM’s collections. These were made by the Dazzle Section based at the Royal Academy of Arts, at Burlington House in London. Scale models were painted and used to test dazzle designs. They were placed on a rotating turntable and viewed through a periscope. This allowed Wilkinson’s team to test how their dazzle schemes distorted a ship’s form from different viewpoints. Wilkinson believed that using strong contrasts, with light and dark greys, blues and greens, was most effective. Wilkinson appointed ‘port officers’ at major ports around Britain. They supervised the painting of ships from the finished designs. Many port officers were artists themselves, such as Vorticist artist Edward Wadsworth.

The man behind the brush Wilkinson’s art is represented in many national collections including the National Maritime Museum, Imperial War Museums, Royal Academy of Arts and the Royal Society of British Artists. He was passionate about ships and the sea. Born in 1878, he studied at Portsmouth and Southsea School of Art, and found early work selling his drawings to newspapers. He built a career at the Illustrated London News before enlisting with the Navy during the First World War. After the war the Royal Commission on Awards to Inventors awarded Wilkinson £2000 and recognised him as the creator of Dazzle.

©IWM

For further press information about The Fleet of Dazzle, please email [email protected] or call 020 7613 5867 PATTERNITY www.patternity.org

“Because a shared awareness and understanding of pattern can positively shape our future”

Founded in 2009 by ‘cult pattern pioneers’: photographer/art director Anna Murray and surface/ product designer Grace Winteringham, PATTERNITY was born from the belief that a shared engagement and understanding of pattern can have positive and powerful results.

PATTERNITY comprises a pattern-focused research/consultancy department, award- winning creative studio and pioneering events and education hub. With an unrivalled position as the go-to authority on pattern, both on and beneath the surface, PATTERNITY uses pattern as a tool to tell engaging and worthwhile stories about the world in which we all live.

PATTERNITY has received international recognition for its boundless, specialist approach to pattern exploration and implementation. Collaborating with individuals, brands and institutions, connecting the dots, merging theworlds of art and design, science and technology, history, health and education, it undertakes a diverse array of projects, unified by the universal and omnipresent language of pattern.

With a global following of more than a million pattern enthusiasts, PATTERNITY was cited by the Telegraph as one of the world’s ‘Top 10 Most Influential Style Blogs’ and voted 6th in Wallpaper* magazine’s 20 ‘Best Things On The Web’. In addition, it has built up notable industry awards, international press support and a client list including Apple, BBC, the Barbican, Celine, Diageo, Getty, Nike, Selfridges and the V&A.

PATTERNITY’S ongoing commitment is to ‘use pattern to better understand life’ and to champion its visionary philosophy of ‘seeing and being’ in the world today.

IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUMS (IWM) www.iwm.org.uk

IWM tells the story of people who have lived, fought and died in conflicts involving Britain and the Commonwealth since the First World War. Its unique collections, made up of the everyday and the exceptional, reveal stories of people, places, ideas and events. IWM tells vivid personal stories and creating powerful physical experiences across its five museums, reflecting the realities of war as both a destructive and creative force. It challenges people to look at conflict from different perspectives, enriching their understanding of the causes, course and consequences of war and its impact on people’s lives.

IWM’s five branches attract more than two million visitors each year. IWM London, the flagship branch, is transforming, with new First World War Galleries and a new atrium with large-object displays opening in summer 2014 to mark the centenary of the First World War (Please note IWM London is currently closed and will reopen on 19 July 2014). IWM’s other branches are IWM North, housed in an iconic award-winning building designed by Daniel Libeskind; IWM Duxford, a world-renowned aviation museum and Britain’s best preserved wartime airfield; Churchill War Rooms, housed in Churchill’s secret headquarters below Whitehall; and the Second World War cruiser HMS Belfast.

First World War Centenary (www.1914.org) 2014–2018 marks the centenary of the First World War, a landmark anniversary for Britain and the world. IWM will mark the centenary by leading a vibrant, four-year programme of cultural activities across the country, including the opening of brand new First World War Galleries at IWM London in 2014.

For further press information about The Fleet of Dazzle, please email [email protected] or call 020 7613 5867