FEARNE CLEMENTINE 1789 • PROJECT ARCHIVE
Liberty London Beauty Advent Calendar
A study in heritage, observation and the quiet theatre of Christmas.
01 • THE IDEA
EVERY DETAIL BEGAN SOMEWHERE
So many of the elements in the artwork were pulled from Liberty itself. The six heraldic crests above the entrance belong to the wives of Henry VIII, and I redrew them as tiny pieces of architectural memory beneath the front door. The Liberty crest, the carved animals, the black timber, the clock, the foliage and the old uniform references all became part of the world around the store.
Study / reference / process
THE RESEARCH
A building full of clues
There are references tucked throughout the design. George and the Dragon appears from the clock. The six heraldic crests above the front doors, belonging to Henry VIII’s wives, sit beneath the entrance. The golden ship nods to Liberty’s construction and its naval timber history. The dancing couple is reimagined from a 1920s Liberty scarf advertisement. The animals, berries and foliage are inspired by carvings and details found around the store. Even the pigeon on the roof carries a small memorial symbol, honouring Liberty staff who died during the war, while also remembering the pigeon’s own quiet service in wartime.
PROCESS TABLE
A desk full of evidence
Layer sketches, photographs and references at different depths. The composition responds gently to the cursor and to scroll velocity.
02 • FROM RESEARCH TO FORM
The archive assembles
The side panels were designed almost like portals. That moment when you step away from the London street, your shoes meet the wooden floors, and the store seems to transport you somewhere else entirely. A little more wooded. A little more dreamlike. A little more impossible to leave quickly.
Study / reference / process
THE PROCESS
From observation to illustration
When I was designing this concept, I kept thinking about how beautiful the Liberty advent calendar box always is, and how strange it is that something so considered can feel emotionally tied to such a small window of time. Once Christmas has passed, even the most beautiful festive packaging can suddenly feel out of season, and I wanted to move away from that.
So instead of making something overtly Christmassy, I imagined a box that could carry the feeling of Christmas without being trapped inside it. Something nocturnal, layered and full of little discoveries. A piece that could move gently from the final hours before Christmas into the charm of a brand new year. Less red-and-green spectacle, more old wood, winter stars, hidden symbols and the quiet romance of a building that seems to keep its own memories.
03 • DETAILS IN MOTION
THE DETAILS OF THE LIBERTY ADVENT CALENDAR
04 • SKETCH TO FINISH
Move across the artwork to uncover the hand beneath it
The concept is called The Night Before Christmas, and it imagines Liberty after dark, in the final hours before the doors open. Staff are preparing the store, garlands are being tied, windows are being dressed, gifts are being carried, and the building becomes less of a shopfront and more of a living house. I wanted to honour the many hands behind the magic, but also the many hands that built Liberty into what it is: the carved details, the Tudor Revival architecture, the timber, the heraldry, the patterns, the folklore and the small things you only notice when you really look.
05 • FILM STUDIES
The project in motion
01
DETAILS BEYOND
02
THE OLD ADVERT
03
MANY SKETCHES
06 • EVERY MARK HAS A REASON
LIBERTY BEAUTY ADVENT CALENDAR 2027
01
The Ship
Explain what this detail references, where it was found and how it entered the final composition.
02
The Sign
Explain what this detail references, where it was found and how it entered the final composition.
03
Tudor Revival
Explain what this detail references, where it was found and how it entered the final composition.
THE COMPLETE PROJECT
The Night Before Christmas
For me, Liberty has always had that feeling of stepping into another world. The wooden floors, the Tudor Revival details, the carvings, the windows, the sense that every corner has collected something. So these scenes became little moments of preparation, where the building is quietly getting ready before anyone arrives.