Mirror surround c. 1870 - 1880

mixed-media, silk, textile, wood

wood texture

mixed-media

silk

arts-&-crafts-movement

textile

wooden texture

wood

decorative-art

This mirror surround was created by May Morris, daughter of William Morris, the famous textile designer and socialist reformer. The mirror is a striking example of the Arts and Crafts movement in Britain, which rejected the industrial revolution and celebrated traditional craftsmanship and simple, elegant design. Notice the floral embroidery, the sinuous, organic forms, and the pastel colors: these are all hallmarks of the aesthetic. The Arts and Crafts movement sought to critique the social structures of its own time by imagining a utopian world of labor. We can also see this artwork as a feminist intervention; embroidery was seen as a domestic craft, and by elevating it to the level of fine art, Morris challenged the gendered hierarchies of the art world. To learn more, look for scholarly articles and books on the Arts and Crafts movement.

Comments

minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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The English Arts and Crafts movement reasserted the worth of handmade objects in the face of 19th century industrialization and mass production. William Morris (1834-96), considered the leader of the English Arts and Crafts movement, founded Morris, Marshall, Faulkner and Company, a workshop which produced some of the finest decorative art of the 19th century. Furniture, wallpaper, textiles and stained glass produced in Morris’s workshop all lived up to the famous Morris credo: “Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” Morris described beautiful decoration as "an alliance with nature,” and indeed, many of his textiles and wallpaper designs were patterned in floral motifs. This surround, rendered with silk floss on a cotton background, entwines lilies with leaves to create an organic geometry. The embroidered border, framed with walnut, surrounds a mirror.