Miles To Go Before I Sleep, an exhibition of prints by Tom Hammick will open in December at Paul Smith’s No.9 Albemarle Street store and online.
The artist and designer have each produced new items to celebrate their collaboration. Hammick has made two limited edition woodcuts, Arrival at the Ball and Full Sail, both exclusively available through Paul Smith, who has designed a collection of silk accessories, two pocket squares and a scarf, featuring details from Tom’s artwork.
The show takes its inspiration from Paul’s own sources of creativity – his curiosity, sense of adventure, and relentless exploration of the world, which are all prevalent themes in Tom’s work.
Paul has been a follower and avid collector of Tom’s work for many years, but it was only in November 2019 that they finally met in person at Paul’s studio in Covent Garden. Tom was able to share an extensive assortment of his work at the meeting, and the conversation quickly came to the exciting idea for an exhibition at Paul Smith No.9 Albemarle Street.
The collaboration was a natural fit with print being a medium that both Tom and Paul share as a signature part of their work, as well as a great appreciation of the use of colours and combining them in playful variations.
Whilst Tom draws much inspiration from his everyday life, he is also very inspired by myth, literature, music and poetry that shape the narrative of his works. The title of the Paul Smith exhibition Miles To Go Before I Sleep is taken from a poem called Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep