Arts and Crafts

Chapter 10
Arts & Crafts Movement
http://anc.gray-cells.com/Intro.html

The Victorian style of heavily ornamental interiors, ornate, embellished

typefaces prevailed in England and America during the latter half of the
19th century. In both countries, techniques of mass production promoted
the use of reproductions in many different styles.

To the proponents of Arts & Crafts, the Industrial Revolution and

Victorian era separated humans from their own creativity and
individualism; the worker was a cog in the wheel of progress, living in
an environment of shoddy machine-made goods, based more on
ostentation than function.
 John Ruskin
1819 - 1900

Ruskin was an English writer, art critic and reformer.

Ruskin was born in London and educated at the University of Oxford. His father,
a wealthy merchant, encouraged his youthful passions for art, literature, and
travel. He set forth his theory about the relationship between art and morality in
the first volume of Modern Painters. Rebelling against the aesthetically
numbing and socially debasing effects of the Industrial Revolution, he put
forth the theory that art, which is essentially spiritual, reached its zenith in the
Gothic art of the late Middle Ages, which was inspired by religious and moral
zeal.

Ruskin believed that individual craftsmen produced the most beautiful and
unique work. Craftsman, if given the freedom to design, were capable of
producing beautiful works of art.
 William Morris
1834 - 1896

William Morris was one of the

principal founders of the British
Arts and Crafts Movement and is
best known as a designer of wallpaper
and patterned fabrics, a writer of
poetry and fiction, and an early
founder of the socialist movement
in Britain.

Was appalled by the “tawdry”

influence of the Victorian era and
the preoccupation with mass
production and less with the
creative human spirit.
 William Morris
1834 - 1896

Typefaces design by
William Morris

Work designed for

the Kelmscott Press
The Century Guild - Hobby Horse
The most important influence of the late-19th century arts and crafts organizations, was
started in 1882. The founder and guiding spirit was the designer and architect A. H.
Mackmurdo, together with his friend Selwyn Image, and a former pupil, H. P. Horne.
Mackmurdo and Horne became the principal designers for the Guild.

Selwyn Image was responsible for the cover design for the magazine of the Guild, the
Hobby Horse.

The production of the Century Guild workshops included furniture and metalwork,
wallpaper, enamelling, and textiles. Artists associated with the Century Guild included the
artist Heywood Sumner, the potter William de Morgan, the enameller Clement Heaton,
and Benjamin Creswick, a sculptor.

The mouthpiece of the Guild, the Hobby Horse, started in 1884, and by emphasising
printing as a craft in its own right, became an inspiration both to William Morris in setting
up his Kelmscott Press, and to others in what became the private press movement.

The Hobby Horse Magazine was published quarterly.

 Arts and Crafts
The Legacy

The legacy of the Arts and Crafts movement extends beyond

visual appearances.

Arts and Crafts established attitudes about materials, function,

quality, and social value which became a standard and
inspiration for 20th century designers.

Still having a positive impact on modern graphic design.

Many typefaces are seeing a revival

Goudy, Century Schoolbook, Cloister, Franklin Gothic,

Caledonia
 Frederic W. Goudy
1865 - 1947

Goudy became interested in art, literature, and

typography on “a higher plane than mere
commercialism.”

Goudy had a long association with Lanston

Monotype Company which commissioned
some of his finest typefaces.

He designed 122 typefaces including this one.

Copperplate Bold
Frederic W. Goudy
1865 - 1947
 Frank Lloyd Wright
1867-1959

American architect, was a pioneer in the

modern style. He is considered one of the
greatest figures in 20th-century
architecture.

Wright believed that architectural form

must ultimately be determined by the
function of the building, its environment,
and the type of materials used in the
structure.

His exteriors incorporated low horizontal http://www.geocities.com/AllWrightSite/

proportions and strongly projecting eaves.
This concept was particularly evident in his
early Prairie style, single-family houses,
 Morris F. Benton
Head of typeface design - American
Typefounders

Designed revivals of Bodoni and Garamond

Benton design 255 typefaces

Designed Century Schoolbook after studying

human perception and comprehension.
 Your Assignment
• http://anc.gray-cells.com/Intro.html
• Go to the above identified website
• Choose ONE individual with the same beginning last initial as yours. (If there is
not a person with the same initial as yours, go to the person with a beginning
initial as close to yours as possible. i.e. Adcock, Margie to Bauer or Burne-Jones.
• Research the individual by answering the following questions.
• Birth/death dates
• Date(s) of designing
• Type of design your choice is MOST known for
• One significant accomplishment
• Discover an additional historical fact for the designer (check the timeline)
• Critical thinking: What about their design style has influenced modern society?
• Go to the discussion board and enter ALL your answers.
• Respond to 2 of your classmates