George Smart: The Tailor of Frant

George Smart (1774-1846), a tailor in Frant, Sussex, is today celebrated for his wonderfully naïve Folk Art fabric collage pictures, a pair of which are being sold in the Costume, Accessories & Textiles Sale on 18^th November.

Smart, who styled himself Cat Manufacturer, Artist in Cloth & Velvet Figures and Professor of Peculiar Art, used clippings and remnants from his tailoring business to create animals and scenes from his village, depicting local characters whom he would have seen daily from his shop window. Two of his most popular figures are those presently up for sale – Old Bright, The Postman, and The Goosewoman.

Whilst little is known of Smart’s life today, his charming pictures were popular souvenirs for early 19^th century tourists; he was often featured in early guidebooks of the area and even secured the Duke of Sussex as a patron.

After being forgotten for many years, his pictures are once again much celebrated and in demand. Indeed, 21 of his works were included in the 2014 Folk Art exhibition at Tate Britain, and a selection are on display in Tunbridge Wells Museum. Only around 70-80 works by Smart are now known to still exist.

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