When a loom makes a man

• • Jason’s first career was as the lead guitarist in a rock band
• • He makes rugs for clients including the fashion house Loewe
• • He is still using the same workshop his father set up in 1964

When Jason Collingwood left school and refused to go to university, he was given the ultimatum of helping his father, Peter Collingwood, a preeminent British weaver, in his rug-weaving workshop in order to ‘pay’ rent, “I was a typically grumpy teenager when I started helping in his workshop,” he says, “but at 24 I had more awareness of his standing and decided to take advantage of his knowledge and experience. I proved to be technically adept and he had the confidence to send out rugs I had woven in his name.” Jason does not describe himself as an artist, but as an artisan, “I would also be happy to be called a skilled machine (loom) operative! People think my day is spent in some creative cloud, but the truth is there are only so many steps required to weave a rug. The secret is in recognising that if it looks handmade, it is not well made.”