By Katrina Filer
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| Angela Cobbinah. Althea McNish in 2008. Photography courtesy of the Camden New Journal. |
McNish's early life in Trinidad was characterized by her attachment to nature. Like many designers before her, she sought to imitate the qualities of the natural world in her own work, and she was a painter from a very young age. Her creativity was matched by her technical interests, however, and she was just as likely to be found drawing up blueprints for septic tanks as she was painting flowers. This is why she pursued an education in architecture at the Architectural Association School in London, but quickly transitioned to the London School of Graphic and Printing Arts, fearing that a seven-year architecture education in the sunless city would be too dreary to bear.
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| Althea McNish. Golden Harvest, 1959. Screen-printed cotton. Designed for Hull Traders Ltd. Photography courtesy of the Whitworth, The University of Manchester. This abstraction of wheat was designed after McNish took a walk in a British wheat field that reminded her of the sugar plantations and rice fields of her home country, hence the tropical twist (Cobbinah). McNish saw beauty in every natural thing—even monotonous—and channeled this beauty to make sensational impressionist patterns. |
Following her graduation, she walked straight up to a fabric company. Her boldness, especially as a woman of color in Britain, was a force to be reckoned with—and in this case was rewarded, as they commissioned her on the spot. The creativity of her prints was supported by her deep technical knowledge. Though many companies doubted that the vibrancy of her colors would ever take to manufactured fabric, she guaranteed they would. Years of experimenting with dyes and practicing screen printing techniques gave her this edge (Cobbinah).
In just 2 years, McNish's fabrics were sweeping the British fashion industry. Her clients included Dior, Givenchy, and even Queen Elizabeth on her visit to Trinidad in 1966. In a postwar world of modernist grey, McNish's work was a sudden blast of color into the market (Waldek). These huge flowers and bold colors were possibly the bravest take on floral prints the fashion world has ever seen. They were a forefront to the oncoming wave of psychedelic and impressionist color that was about to overtake the design world—but her commitment to quality in every replication of her work continued to set her apart.
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| Althea McNish. Hibiscus print, 1958.Photography courtesy of Althea McNish & John Weiss. McNish drew inspiration from the beautiful fauna of Trinidad and other tropical locations. This amount of floral boldness was never before seen on the British textile market. |
These prints were also a beautiful representation of the Trinidadian identity. Finally, these tropical prints were coming from the correct place, instead of cheaply and callously appropriated by white designers who showed little commitment to accurately representing Caribbean natural world. Interestingly, though McNish was the first Black designer of international repute in Britain, she believed discrimination didn't play a role in her professional life. "I was so rare, they were dumbfounded", she described (Sellers). Still, pioneering a new style while being Caribbean immigrant and Black woman in a new country was a daunting task, especially without the deep-rooted privilege that her white counterparts experienced. In order to be truly recognized by the industry, she had to become the authority on floral textiles—or else be flooded out by non-Black voices.
Though she denied experiencing discrimination in her life, she still made it her duty to uplift Caribbean voices. She was a proud member of the Caribbean Arts Movement, who worked to help the influx of Caribbean artists find due representation and respect on British soil. The mentorship of her and other members was key in helping young Black artists use their voice that was uniquely theirs, yet reflective of their cultural heritage (Sellers).
After introducing tropical exuberance and calypsonian optimism to the British design scene and ensuring quality for over 20 years, McNish retired from textile design in 1980 (Sellers). The strength, resilience, and creativity of those that had been colonized now echoed loudly in the land of the colonizer, as McNish and the other members of the Caribbean Arts Movement fought for their voice in the worlds of art and design. She passed away in April 2020 at the age of 95. She leaves behind some of the most bold and recognizable patterns of the 60s and 70s, and a deep legacy amongst the other Caribbean designers in Britain.
Works Cited:
Cobbinah, A. (2019, June 20). Althea: the original material girl. Retrieved June 10, 2020, from http://camdennewjournal.com/article/althea-the-original-material-girl
Sellers, L. (2018, June). Maharam Stories: Althea McNish. Retrieved June 10, 2020, from https://www.maharam.com/stories/sellers_althea-mcnish
Waldek, S. (2018, March 8). Meet the Women Designers Who Changed History. Retrieved June 10, 2020, from https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/women-designers-who-changed-history
Cobbinah, A. (2019, June 20). Althea: the original material girl. Retrieved June 10, 2020, from http://camdennewjournal.com/article/althea-the-original-material-girl
Sellers, L. (2018, June). Maharam Stories: Althea McNish. Retrieved June 10, 2020, from https://www.maharam.com/stories/sellers_althea-mcnish
Waldek, S. (2018, March 8). Meet the Women Designers Who Changed History. Retrieved June 10, 2020, from https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/women-designers-who-changed-history
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