The Arts and Crafts Movement

The Arts and Crafts Movement

Corinne Henslee

             Coinciding with the boom of industrial development, the Arts and Crafts movement is primarily defined as being first and foremost for the common man, and was intended to bring back craftsmanship in home design. To understand the atmosphere of Britain at this time, the birthplace of the Arts and Crafts movement, one must first look at the organization of the pre-raphaelites and their influence. At a time when Britain was experiencing a lot of turmoil, British artists were creating artwork that displayed religious, medieval, and moral displays, seemingly in an attempt to self stabilize (Cothren, Stokstad, pg. 1000). The moral importance in artwork led to the creation of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, in which the seven founding artists thought that British art had become misguided, and turned their focus to the conventions of artwork before Raphael.

 It was thought that the art created in the Middle Ages and the early Renaissance contained a beauty and sense of spirituality that didn’t exist in the 19th century, and the members of the Brotherhood believed it was of greater morals and realness (Cothren, Stokstad, pg. 1000, Art History). While the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood primarily focused on fine art, the group had an impact on essentially the founder of the Arts and Crafts movement, William Morris, who began as a painter with the group’s ideals.

William Morris, as previously mentioned, started off as a painter before divulging into the world of design. Considered to be the figurehead of the Arts and Crafts movement, his personal philosophy followed the sentiment that the industrial revolution would kill design (Obinski, Met Museum). With Britain in rapid development in that department, the production quality of goods began to tank, which Morris expressed clear disdain for. He opposed the assembly line model, and as a socialist aligned with the ideals of the pre-raphaelites, Morris thought that hand making objects and being involved in the entire process created a sense of satisfaction in one's work that was both honest and moral (Cothren, Stokstad, pg. 1001, Art History). He thought that factory lines created a distance between the artisan and the manufacturer that bordered on inhuman, that the quality of manufactured goods with the industrial revolution was something that had no artistic integrity, which his design firm intended to remedy (Obinski, Met Museum).

 To mention the anti-capitalist sentiments, and the “sellout” sentiment surrounding factory workers is important to the very core of the Arts and Crafts movement, as the idea was that homes could have a uniting aesthetic without having to sacrifice the pride in the fact that they are of “true” artisanry and craftsmanship. 

Morris’ company was essentially founded due to the fact that he was not happy with the interior design options for his own home. His decorating firm consisted of himself and a few friends, in which they made a line of medieval inspired designs, ranging from furniture, to wallpaper, to tile, fabrics, and other home decor items (Cothren, Stokstad, pg. 1001, Art History). The medieval, obviously had quite the hold on Morris, dating back to the core ideals of the pre-raphaelites, as it suggests a time in which simplicity and honesty in the quality of one’s work took the forefront. While a range of his products were pretty pricey, Morris & Company offered simpler and inexpensive furniture as well, to provide to the common man furnishings that were handmade, yet still accessible. The overall mission of Morris’ company was to create a cohesive atmosphere throughout one’s home, and many of his products were designed with the intent that they would be bought and placed together (Cothren, Stokstad, pg. 1001, Art History). His art was for the people, quoted in a lecture saying “I do not want art for a few, any more than education for a few, or freedom for a few,” referring to the fact he did not want his products to be highly specialized or for the upper class alone (Cothren, Stokstad, pg. 1001, Art History).

“Sussex” Chair and “Peacock and Dragon” Curtain

Pictured here is a more inexpensive piece from Morris’ collection, a rush-seated chair, which again, is modeled after medieval design. Behind it is a hand loomed wool twill, the motifs of such meant to soothe and calm the urban industrialist lifestyle, providing the home and its furnishings as a safe space. (the William Morris Gallery, London Borough of Waltham Forest).

A room decorated/arranged by William Morris located at the Victoria and Albert Museum, with the furniture made by his chief furniture designer, Phillip Webb (John Webb, Photograph, Encyclopedia Britannica). This room contains many of the design elements employed by Morris & Company, such as their traditional palette of dark woods and earthy tones throughout the entire environment. The medieval style of Arts and Crafts is shown throughout the room in the tiles and paneling of the walls, and the folding screen with what appears to be religious or medieval imagery upon it. 

Common motifs in the Arts and Crafts style appear to be dark wood stains on furniture, with little to no light wood being used throughout a home’s atmosphere. Is the purpose for this simply following the trends of medieval culture and trends? There is little to no deviation from the trends set by the Morris & Co. standard, even when crossing cultures. Though originating in England, the Arts and Crafts movement spread to the United States as well, though success of the movement seems to vary from source to source. The socialism aspect of the Arts and Crafts movement was lessened in a large number of places, and the U.S. soon adopted the value of handcrafted items, but without the outright disdain for industrialization and condemnation of cheaper manufacturing. However, a small number of places were able to preserve one of the core philosophies of the movement, and guilds of artists following Morris’ model started popping up in locations all over the U.S. 

The United States Arts and Crafts movement, though the socialist ideals of the movement were not as widespread, was very successful in the ways that the philosophies were applied. Many of these “socialist movements” pertained to the teaching of women, who were a large part of the Arts and Crafts movement in pottery and jewelry making, as well as being the targeted audience for these total home decor designs. The design motifs were very similar to that of the British movement, with themes of naturalism and honesty in the materials used and time put into each piece (Obinski, Met Museum).

Pictured here is a piece of pottery made by the Paul Revere Pottery company, made by Sarah Galner in 1915, featuring an illustrative floral design common in the Arts and Crafts movement, with the staple blue and green earthy tones (MET museum, Paul Revere Pottery). With the large size of the United States, the Arts and Crafts movement had a larger sense of diversity than the movement in Britain where it originated, and different influences such as that from the East, and Native American design motifs also began to appear in tandem with the Arts and Crafts style (Obinski, Met Museum).

However, the movement began to die out in the beginning of the 20th century, as automation and industry surpassed the time and need for handcrafted goods. To see this movement reflect the same sentiments today that artists face with artificial intelligence, it is truly a question of whether the sentiments of the Arts and Crafts movement will reemerge in a widespread organization of artists. With so much of identity in the modern day relating to “uniqueness” and knowing oneself, yet perfectly still conforming, could the modern trend cycle be broken to adopt the same Arts and Crafts ideals of the late 19th century? As industrialization keeps progressing to inhuman levels, in the same way the founders of the movement thought it was at the time, could the political aspect of the Arts and Crafts movement make a comeback? The overall decor ideal of having a unified aesthetic in one’s home has already taken hold, but will the real meaning behind the movement?