Collection DC 062 - Papers of Liz Arthur relating to Robert Stewart, artist and designer

Liz Arthur was the curator of costume and textiles for Glasgow Museums and the Burrell Collection for many years. She is a former Chairman of the Renfrewshire Branch of the Embroiderer's Guild and has worked at the Glasgow School of Art in various capacities. 
She is a researcher, exhibition curator, lecturer and writer. While writing 'Robert Stewart Design : 1946 - 95' she consulted Robert Stewart's family, friends & colleagues and made use of the Glasgow School of Art's Archives and Collections Centre.
She has written a number of other books including, 'Kathleen Whyte : Embroiderer', 'Kathleen Whyte : Design in Embroidery', 'Margaret Swain : Scottish Embroidery', 'Twentieth Century Embroidery in Great Britain', 'Embroidery for Religion and Ceremonial' and 'Embroidered Church Kneelers'.

Robert Stewart was one of the foremost British designers of the second half of the twentieth century. His work revolutionized design in postwar Britain. Trained at the Glasgow School of Art in the 1940s. He took charge of the printed textiles department there in 1949. He was passionately interested in surface design and became one of the most significant influences in the field. He designed for Liberty, Donald Brothers, and the Edinburgh Tapestry Company in Great Britain and North America before forming his own company to produce printed ceramic kitchenware. During the 1970s and 1980s he designed and manufactured large-scale ceramic murals for public buildings. During his thirty-five years at the Glasgow School of Art, Stewart proved to be an inspiring and influential teacher. His legacy is to be found in his many successful former students now working in a variety of fields, including textiles and theatre design.