THE ART OF WALLPAPER AT THE WILLIAM MORRIS SOCIETY

Image: Hammersmith wallpaper, designed by William Morris, 1890, Jeffrey and Co. for Morris and Co.

An exhibition at The William Morris Society in Hammersmith explores the visually rich art of wallpaper. A range of beautiful wallpapers on loan from Sanderson's Design Group’s archive portrays the development of wallpaper design in the 19th century and its legacy today.

The show features many wallpapers designed by William Morris and explores his influence on later designers. Early 19th century French wallpapers are contextualised with Islamic inspired designs of the reform movement, prompting Morris’s own response and contribution to interior design trends of the time. Originally curated by Mary Schoeser for Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh, this visually rich exhibition looks at the work of William Morris in a new light, considering his wallpaper designs in light of the radical changes in taste witnessed during the Victorian era. Morris’s distinctive patterning is set against a backdrop of the fanciful, naturalistic patterns that typified the fashionable English and French papers of his youth.

`The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. in Context’ runs until 11 August 2024. More details are available on the website www.williammorrissociety.org .