William Morris

Key facts

Lived

1834–1896, British^[5]

Movement

• Arts and Crafts

^[5]

Works held in

9 museums^[1]

Wikipedia

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• Woman Drinking from a Fountain

  Victoria and Albert Museum

  Cromwell Road, United Kingdom

  4 works

  The V&A on Cromwell Road in London is the definitive Morris archive, holding manuscripts, textile samples, and the three 1860 figure studies Woman Drinking from a Fountain, Woman Holding a Small Book, and Woman Gathering Fruit. These rare drawn figures sit alongside his wallpapers and stained-glass cartoons.

  

  Museum detailsMap
• Embroidered Border

  Kelmscott Manor

  Kelmscott, United Kingdom

  2 works

  Kelmscott Manor, Morris's Oxfordshire country home from 1871 until his death in 1896, is now held by the Society of Antiquaries. The interior preserves his personal textiles and furniture in situ, including the Embroidered Border (1890) and the early Venus (or Aphrodite) (1860) stitched with Jane Morris.

  

  Museum detailsMap

Plan your visit to see William Morris →

• Are there William Morris works on display in the United States?+

  Yes, examples of William Morris's work can be found in several locations in the United States. Morris (1834^[5]-1896^[5]) was associated with the Pre-Raphaelites, and he began the firm Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. in 1861^[5]; it was later known as Morris & Co. from 1875. The company produced stained glass, textiles, carpets, and furniture. Morris also designed wallpaper and was involved in dyeing, weaving, woodcut engraving, printing, and architectural preservation. He lectured on dyeing and other subjects. Morris was a proponent of handicrafts, and he sought to bring art to many areas of life. To see Morris's work, one might visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City (1000 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10028). The Art Institute of Chicago (111 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60603) also holds examples of decorative arts and textiles. Additionally, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (Avenue of the Arts, 465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115) has a collection of British^[5] decorative arts that may include pieces by Morris or his firm.
• Can you visit the original Morris & Co workshops?+

  Morris & Co. had several locations during its operation, though the original workshops are no longer open to the public. The firm, initially called Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co., was founded in 1861^[5]. Its first premises were at 8 Red Lion Square, Bloomsbury, London. This location included an office, a showroom, and workshops for crafting items such as metalwork, carpets, and stained glass. In 1875, the firm was reconstituted as Morris & Company. In 1877, a showroom opened on Oxford Street, London. Production expanded in 1881, when the Merton Abbey works were established. These works were significant for textile production, including high warp production. While the original Red Lion Square workshops are not accessible, other sites associated with the Arts and Crafts^[5] movement can be visited. For example, the Art Workers Guild moved to 6 Queen Square, Bloomsbury, London, in 1914. Additionally, the Mortuary Chapel in Compton, Surrey, features decoration designed and executed by Mary Seton Watts and local trainees. These locations offer insight into the broader Arts and Crafts context.
• Did william morris have children?+

  William Morris had two daughters, Jane ‘Jenny’ Morris and Mary ‘May’ Morris.
• Did William Morris write poetry?+

  Yes, William Morris wrote poetry, alongside his prose romances and translations. His early poems show the influence of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, especially Rossetti's poem 'The Blessed Damozel'. Morris's poems often revisit Arthurian tales and praise amorous yearning, echoing the themes of early Italian rhymes. Morris's first published volume of poetry was *The Defence of Guenevere*, which was released in 1858^[5]. Macmillan rejected it initially, and Morris eventually published it at his own expense. Later, in 1867, Morris published *The Life and Death of Jason*, which had originally been conceived as one of the tales in *The Earthly Paradise*. The first volume of *The Earthly Paradise* appeared in 1868, with Volumes I and III published in 1870. Morris's literary works often contain vivid descriptions of women, akin to Pre-Raphaelite paintings. In his romance 'The Hollow Land', the character Margaret is described with attention to details and chromatic hues, reminiscent of Rossetti's artistic style. This connection between visual art and writing demonstrates Morris's aesthetic sensibilities and his ability to translate visual elements into literary form.
• Is william morris art deco?+

  William Morris was not Art Deco; he was part of the Arts and Crafts^[5] movement.
• Was william morris a christian?+

  William Morris studied theology at Oxford, but later abandoned the Church.
• What is at Kelmscott House?+

  Kelmscott House in Hammersmith, London, was William Morris's home during the later part of his life. In 1890^[5], Morris established the Kelmscott Press at Kelmscott House. He designed and cast new fonts of type with the help of Emery Walker. Morris's love for Gothic forms influenced his approach to book design; he studied examples of early printed books to inform his work. Every aspect of the Kelmscott Press publications, from the paper and binding to the ink, received careful consideration, with Morris himself overseeing the manufacturing. The first book from the Kelmscott Press appeared in 1891. All of the ornaments for the Kelmscott Press were designed by William Morris. The Kelmscott Press operated on a co-operative basis. One of the most significant achievements of the Kelmscott Press was the publication of the Chaucer. Morris started this project in the summer of 1894, and it was completed in the spring of 1896^[5]. The Chaucer featured eighty-six pictures by Edward Burne-Jones, with wood engravings by W. H. Hooper and a title page designed by Morris.
• What is at Kelmscott Manor?+

  Kelmscott Manor^[3] is a 17th-century farmhouse near Lechlade, Gloucestershire, that was the country home of William Morris. Morris and Dante Gabriel Rossetti jointly leased it in 1871^[5]. Morris called it 'a jewel of a house'. He loved it for its rural setting, the austere beauty of the Cotswold buildings, and its proximity to the River Thames. Morris, his wife Jane, their daughters Jenny and May, and Rossetti used the house as a summer retreat. The house was simply furnished. Morris enjoyed the craftsmanship of the local architecture, the flowers and plants, and fishing. His daughter May recalled that his Willow Bough wallpaper of 1887 was inspired by the willows growing alongside the stream at Kelmscott. Several other designs reflect the inspiration of the Cotswolds: the printed cottons Evenlode and Windrush, named after local streams, and Snakeshead, inspired by the snake's head fritillary growing wild in the fields. You can visit Kelmscott Manor at Kelmscott, near Lechlade, Gloucestershire, GL7 3HJ. In the village, you can also see cottages by Philip Webb and Ernest Gimson. Gimson also designed the Village Hall.
• What is News from Nowhere about?+

  William Morris's *News from Nowhere*, published in 1890^[5], presents a vision of a future utopian society. The novel reflects Morris's socialist ideals and his critique of industrialised society. Morris uses the narrative to explore themes of social justice, environmentalism, and the value of art and craft. In this future world, women are portrayed as strong, healthy figures. The story follows a protagonist as he journeys through this transformed England, encountering communities that have rejected capitalism and embraced a simpler, more communal way of life. The narrative contrasts sharply with the realities of Victorian England, offering a critique of its social and economic structures. Morris's detailed descriptions bring this world to life, while also serving as a commentary on his own society. The Kelmscott Press edition of *News from Nowhere* included a frontispiece drawing of Kelmscott Manor^[3] by Charles March Gere. Morris insisted on an accurate depiction of the manor, reflecting its personal significance to him. The frontispiece, engraved on wood by W. H. Hooper, was completed in March 1893. The image connects the utopian vision of the novel with a real place that Morris deeply loved.
• What is the most famous William Morris pattern?+

  William Morris produced many popular designs for wallpapers and textiles. His Willow Bough pattern, designed in 1887^[5], is among his most recognisable. Morris's daughter May recalled that the design took inspiration from the willow trees growing along the stream at Kelmscott Manor^[3], his country home in Oxfordshire. Morris leased Kelmscott Manor with Dante Gabriel Rossetti in 1871. He described it as 'a jewel of a house'. Morris found solace in the craftsmanship and orderliness of the local architecture, flowers, plants, and fishing. The names of several of his designs reflect the inspiration of the Cotswolds. These include the printed cottons Evenlode and Windrush, named after local streams that feed into the Thames. Snakeshead takes its name from the snake's head fritillary growing wild in the fields around his country home. Another well-known early design is Trellis wallpaper, circa 1864. This pattern was based on the rose trellises around the well-court in the garden at Red House, Bexleyheath, one-time home of Morris and his family. Examples of Morris's tile designs can be viewed at the William Morris Gallery, Walthamstow, London.
• What is william morris famous for designing?+

  William Morris is famous for designing wallpapers, textiles, stained glass, and furniture.
• What was the Arts and Crafts movement?+

  The Arts and Crafts^[5] movement was a British^[5] design and social reform movement that emerged in the 1860s and reached its peak between 1880^[5] and 1910. Its founders, including William Morris, John Ruskin, and Philip Webb, rejected the factory production methods of the Industrial Revolution and the heavily-ornamented machine-made goods that filled Victorian homes. The movement insisted on three things: that design and making should not be separated, that materials should be used honestly (oak should look like oak, never stained to mimic mahogany), and that the maker should take pleasure in the work. Morris put it plainly in a lecture: nothing should be in a home that is not known to be useful or believed to be beautiful. In practice, this meant a return to medieval guild traditions, hand-block-printed textiles instead of roller-printed ones, hand-thrown ceramics instead of moulded ones, and architecture rooted in vernacular British forms. Morris and Co., founded in 1861, produced wallpapers, fabrics, stained glass, furniture, and tapestries under these principles for the next sixty years. The movement spread beyond Britain to the United States (Stickley, Greene and Greene), Austria (the Vienna Secession), and Germany (the Werkbund and later the Bauhaus). Its ideas about honest materials and integrated design fed directly into twentieth-century modernism, even when later modernists rejected its medievalism.