Cooper Hewitt says...
Weaver and textile designer Jack Lenor Larsen founded his eponymous company, Jack Lenor Larsen Incorporated, in 1952, just one year after completing his MFA at Cranbrook and moving to New York. Keyed in to the architectural market, the firm produced both hand- and power-woven textiles for interiors. In 1958, Larsen Design Studio was formed with Win Anderson as its president. The studio developed new technologies, took commissions from industry to develop new fibers, and consulted on interior furnishings for large-scale architectural commissions.
The company expanded into the European market in 1963, when Larsen International opened first in Zurich, and later with branches in Paris and Stuttgart. By the 1970s, the company was producing fabrics in over thirty countries, in a remarkable variety of techniques. This was a period of rapid expansion: After the disappearance of founder Jim Thompson in Malaysia, Larsen acquired Thaibok Fabrics Ltd. in 1972. In 1973, Larsen Carpet and Leather opened, followed in 1976 by Larsen Furniture.
In 1997, Jack Lenor Larsen Incorporated merged with Cowan & Tout, a subsidiary of the English firm Colefax and Fowler Group. Jack Larsen remained as a design consultant to the firm.
Larsen fabrics are internationally recognized for their innovation, and have been honored with solo exhibitions at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the American Craft Museum, the Mingei International Museum, and many other venues.
