Coffee with a Curator

January 19, 2021 11.00-11.30

Join Curator Helen Elletson to explore soon of the fascinating objects in The William Morris Society’s collection

William Morris’s ‘new and lighter design’

Morris made his debut as a painter during the ‘jovial campaign’ of 1857 to help decorate the walls of the Oxford Union debating hall. However, three stunning watercolours in the Society’s collection for the re-decoration of the ceiling shed light on this lesser-known aspect of the now infamous scheme. We will hear of the artists and their paintings illustrating scenes from Arthurian legend and look at contemporary descriptions of the original ceiling before focusing on the Society’s designs for the ceiling re-decoration; beautiful repeat patterns which have been praised as ‘a tribute to the genius of Morris’.

This is the first in our series of online zoom talks exploring the fascinating objects in our collection. They are free to attend but please book your place in advance. If you enjoy our talks, please consider making a donation to support our work – you can do this on the booking page. Thank you!