Cover of Mr Freedom – Tommy Roberts: British Design Hero
This is the front of the jacket of my new book Mr Freedom – Tommy Roberts: British Design Hero.
I’m very pleased with the design by Trevor Mill, who worked closely with publisher Jen Ross on communicating the vitality, humour and charm of Roberts’ aesthetic. The winged boots were designed by Jim O’Connor and sold at the second Mr Freedom store in Kensington Church Street in 1971 (and were also an onstage favourite of Elton John’s).
The photograph of Jane Maudsley on the right, sporting “bummer” jeans (designed by Diana Crawshaw with a cut-out revealing the buttock cleft) and a baker’s boy cap was taken the same year by Stephen Markeson, as was the photograph of the model in Crawshaw’s “baseball suit” by interiors architect and furniture designer Jon Wealleans.
In the background is a t-shirt display from the first Mr Freedom, at 430 King’s Road. That interior was designed by Electric Colour Company.
Roberts appears on the back in a dandy Brian Aris photograph; also on display are Jimi Hendrix in a white ruffled-front lace shirt designed by Paul Reeves and bought from Roberts’ Swinging London store Kleptomania, as well as a Derek Morton corduroy suit for Roberts’ Covent Garden outlet City Lights Studio and a card for the home-wares shop he ran with Paul Jones, Practical Styling.
Paul Smith has contributed the foreword, in which he says: “Tommy Roberts is an inspiration, a real character and one of Britain’s true eccentrics. He has always been at the forefront of what is new, constantly looking to the future and expanding the boundaries of retailing, fashion and design.”
And on one of the jacket flaps we’ve posted a handwritten list of the things which make Roberts tick. He supplied this to a project developed by Eve Ferret and Mark Summerfield – we’re extremely grateful to them for allowing us to reproduce it.
//Back + front jacket flaps.//
Mr Freedom is out in June – you may order your copy here.