William Morris Gallery News
See this space for the latest press releases and announcements from the Gallery.
November 2024
William Morris Gallery announces 75th anniversary programme for 2025
In 2025, William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow will celebrate the 75th anniversary since its opening. To mark this milestone, the Gallery will present the two major exhibitions Morris Mania and Women in Print: 150 Years of Liberty Textile Designs; the first rehang of its permanent collection displays in over ten years; and a series of talks and events in institutions held around the UK.
Opening in April 2025, Morris Mania will be a major exhibition illustrating the extraordinary versatility and enduring prevalence of Morris’s work in popular British culture. In the lead-up to the exhibition, the Gallery is launching a national appeal inviting the public to donate and lend their own Morris-patterned objects to go on display. Donated objects from the public’s homes will join a diverse selection of works from the William Morris Gallery collection and other national institutions, including a ‘Rose’ patterned seat from the 1980s British Nuclear Submarine Fleet, Willow pattern Nike trainers, and couture fashion inspired by Morris’s designs. Presented together within an eclectic installation, the exhibition will reflect on Morris’s cultural significance as well as asking questions around methods of production and environmental sustainability. A newly commissioned film by Natalie Cubides-Brady will be presented for the first time within the exhibition, splicing together clips of Morris’s patterns in TV and cinema, from Gogglebox and University Challenge, to My Fair Lady and Paddington, to uncover the genealogy of Morris’s designs on screen.
In October 2025, William Morris Gallery will present Women in Print: 150 Years of Liberty Textile Designs. Curated in collaboration with Liberty to celebrate the design house’s 150th anniversary, this major exhibition honours the exceptional contributions of women textile designers over the past 150 years, as seen through the history of Liberty fabrics. Beginning with May Morris and the role of women designers in the Arts and Crafts movement, the exhibition traces the evolving influence of women in textiles, showcasing works by iconic designers such as Jessie M. King, Lucienne Day, and Althea McNish, whose designs have played a crucial role in shaping Liberty’s renowned prints and continue to inspire new fashionable creations.
For the first time since its 2012 major capital project, William Morris Gallery will stage a rehang of its permanent collections, with the first phase of this project taking place throughout the anniversary year. The new rehang will revitalise the Gallery, creating more welcoming and accessible spaces while renewing each of the permanent displays. New themes will be introduced, such as the role of women artists and designers in the Arts and Crafts Movement, the influence of Islamic Art on the designs of William Morris, and how his legacy continues to influence today’s world. The rehang will begin in early 2025, starting with the Gallery’s ground floor spaces, alongside essential works to the building to improve its environmental performance. These vital improvements, funded by the Waltham Forest Council and Art Council England’s Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND), will include enhancements to insulation, heating and ventilation systems.
To celebrate 75 years of William Morris Gallery, a series of talks and events will take place over the course of 2025. The first event will be staged at the V&A on Friday 7 February. Introduced by the V&A’s Director Tristram Hunt, the talk will see Rowan Bain and Qaisra Khan, curators of William Morris and Art from the Islamic World, in conversation with the V&A’s Curator of Nineteenth-Century Furniture, Max Donnelly. Additional events will be announced in the new year.
To help lead it through its anniversary year, the William Morris Gallery Trust – a new charity set up in 2024 to act as a source of advice and support for the Gallery – is looking for new trustees who can bring knowledge, skills and energy to help the Gallery continue to grow and thrive. Trustees play a pivotal role in shaping the future of William Morris Gallery by offering strategic insight and advice on collections, exhibitions, programmes, commercial and fundraising activities whilst also advocating for the Gallery. Deadlines close on 9 December 2024,
“We’re extremely proud to announce the Gallery’s programme for next year, a hugely significant year that marks our 75th anniversary. As well as two landmark exhibitions and a major rehang of the permanent collection, we continue to widen the reach of Morris’ ideas, principles and play
an active role in our local community.”
– Hadrian Garrard, Director, William Morris Gallery
“Waltham Forest Council takes great pride in the legacy of William Morris Gallery and its ongoing role as a cultural and artistic cornerstone for our communities. We’re excited to mark the Gallery’s 75th anniversary with this inspiring programme planned for 2025.”
– Cllr Rosalind Dore, Cabinet Portfolio Lead for Libraries, Culture and Sports and Leisure, Waltham Forest Council
Read the full press release: William Morris Gallery – 2025 programme
Barbour and William Morris Gallery Team Up to Create Archive Inspired Capsule Collection
Lifestyle and heritage brand Barbour is releasing a new collection with The William Morris Gallery, a museum dedicated to the life and work of the influential English Arts & Crafts designer, William Morris. The range brings together two quintessentially British design icons to create new outerwear and clothing with a truly authentic heritage feel.
‘William Morris is known all over the world for his incredibly detailed and instantly recognisable art works. Here at Barbour, we are delighted to be working with The William Morris Gallery to blend these beautiful prints with clothing designs from our own archive. There is a timeless nature to this collection that comes from the long and celebrated history of both Barbour and William Morris, and I am looking forward to customers discovering this new range.’ – Nicola Brown, Director of Womenswear, Barbour
With a love of artisanal craft and the great outdoors at the heart of both Barbour and the work of William Morris, there is an easy synergy that flows throughout the range. Comprising of six pieces of outerwear, two dresses and two shirts the instantly recognisable Eye Bright and Wey Print designs are utilised across the collection. Designed in 1883, the prints have been reinterpreted with bright new colours. These famous leafy and floral prints have an emotional appeal that represents a little bit of home, ready for the wearer to feel welcomed every time they slip on their jacket, dress or shirt.
“We’re very excited to embark on this new project with Barbour, a brand that epitomises quality and the significance of British craft, hand-making and design. This collaboration upholds many of the traditions built by William Morris that still endure to this day.” Hadrian Garrard, Director, William Morris Gallery
Read the full press release: BARBOUR X WILLIAM MORRIS PRESS RELEASE
July 2024
William Morris & Art from the Islamic World – 9 November 2024 to 9 March 2025
This autumn, William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow will present the first exhibition on the influence of art from the Islamic world on William Morris (1834-1896), one of Britain’s most important 19th-century designers and thinkers. A principal founder of the Arts and Crafts Movement, Morris was responsible for producing hundreds of patterns for wallpapers, furnishing fabrics, carpets and embroideries, helping to introduce a new aesthetic into British interiors. While it has long been acknowledged that Morris was inspired by Islamic art, this will be the first exhibition to explore this important aspect of his artistic journey in depth.
Alongside his own iconic designs, outstanding examples of Islamic textiles, ceramics, metalwork and manuscripts from Morris’s personal collection – now belonging to major UK institutions including the British Library, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge – will be brought together for the first time to reveal the wider impacts of these objects, their designs and impressions on Morris’s creative output.
Featuring over 60 works, the exhibition will demonstrate how some of Morris’s best-known designs such as Flower Garden (1879), Wild Tulip and Granada (1884) were directly inspired by Islamic surface design and its technical application. The exhibition is made possible thanks to funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Garfield Weston Foundation.
Ranging from popular 19th-century tourist merchandise to rare artefacts of historical significance, Morris’s collection of Islamic art reveals the importance of contributions of various cultures to the evolution of his design and craftsmanship. William Morris & Art from the Islamic World will mark the first time many of these works have been exhibited since his death.
Read the full press release: William Morris and Art from the Islamic World
May 2024
William Morris Gallery X Walthamstow Football Club kit design wins a prestigious D&AD Award
William Morris Gallery is thrilled to announce that the Walthamstow FC football kit, the world’s first collaboration between a museum and a football club, is now award-winning. Designed by Wood Street Walls, the kit has received a Wooden Pencil Award for Graphic Design (Applied Print Graphics) at the 2024 D&AD Awards. Renowned as one of the world’s most prestigious benchmarks for commercial creativity, the design triumphed over competition from 78 countries and nearly 13,000 entries.
Read more about the award.
March 2024
William Morris Gallery is awarded £417,990 from Arts Council England’s Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND)
William Morris Gallery is pleased to announce that it has been awarded £417,990 from Arts Council England’s Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND) to address significant internal environmental issues connected to humidity and thermal performance of its Grade II* listed building. This will complement a programme of refurbishment works, planned to coincide with the 75th year of the Gallery in 2025.
A planned programme of works is scheduled to begin later this year and is designed to improve overall building performance, mitigate further degradation of the fabric of the building, safeguard the internationally significant collections, and create the conditions for everyone to comfortably visit and work in the Gallery, particularly during summer months.
This funding will allow William Morris Gallery to optimise environmental performance through installing better thermal insulation, mechanical cooling, ventilation, dehumidification units and solar film on windows – all of which are sympathetic to protecting the fabric and longevity of the significant heritage building and collections.
The project will help ensure the Gallery is more resilient to the threat of climate change whilst reducing the Gallery’s overall environmental impact. Through better insulation, using passive solutions and energy efficient technologies, equipment and materials, the interventions will reduce energy consumption.
The Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND) is an open-access capital fund for non-national accredited museums and local authorities based in England to apply for funding to undertake vital infrastructure and urgent maintenance backlogs which are beyond the scope of day-to-day maintenance budgets.
Arts Council England delivers this fund on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).
“This is fantastic news and marks a significant milestone for William Morris Gallery, playing a vital role in its renovation initiative aimed at safeguarding this significant heritage site and its integral position within the Waltham Forest community for future generations.”
Councillor Rosalind Doré, Cabinet Commissioner for Destinations, London Borough of Waltham Forest
November 2023
Art Without Heroes: Mingei – 23 March to 22 September 2024
William Morris Gallery is pleased to announce Art Without Heroes: Mingei, the largest ever exhibition in the UK dedicated to Mingei, the influential folk-craft movement that developed in Japan in the 1920s and 1930s. With more than 80 works, including ceramics, woodwork, paper, toys, textiles, photography and film, the exhibition will incorporate unseen pieces from significant private collections in the UK and Japan, along with museum loans.
Mingei, a term coined by the Japanese philosopher and critic Yanagi Sōetsu (1889-1961) to mean ‘the art of the people’, ascribed cultural value and aesthetic purity to traditional craft objects, unnamed makers and a simpler way of life. The exhibition will consider Mingei both as a historical moment and as a set of principles that remain relevant to contemporary craft, manufacturing and material consumerism worldwide. Mingei was born in response to Japan’s rapid industrialisation, anddeveloped in dialogue with the British Arts and Crafts movement within a specifically Japanese context that included the strong influence of Pure Land Buddhism. The exhibition will also introduce the significance of Korean, Okinawan and Ainu objects to the Mingei movement, showing how these independent cultures contributed to what tends to be seen as a quintessentially Japanese aesthetic.
Read the full press release: Art Without Heroes_Mingei_William Morris Gallery_March 2024_PRESS RELEASE
September 2023
William Morris Gallery launches its Archive Collection for LDF in collaboration with Liberty, spotlighting modern craft from the heart of London
William Morris Gallery and Liberty today announce the Archive Collection, a new range of limited-edition products including homewares, jewellery, accessories and clothing. The Archive Collection builds upon both parties’ longstanding connection as champions of the Arts and Crafts Movement and producers of some of Britain’s most iconic and enduring designs. Sales will support the education and community programme of William Morris Gallery.
As part of the collection, William Morris Gallery and Liberty have commissioned five UK-based contemporary designers to reimagine objects from the Gallery’s archive that were significant to the life of William Morris, pioneer of the Arts and Crafts movement. Each of these special products embodies the spirit of handmaking, working with natural materials and finding joy in labour – principles which underpinned William Morris’ own approach to design. Products include the ‘William Morris Satchel’ by Kingsley Walters, ‘Philip Webb Drinking Glass’ by Stewart Hearn, ‘Arts and Crafts Shirt’ by Blackhorse Lane Ateliers, ‘Water House Mac’ by Cawley Studio and ‘Sussex Chair’ by Wilkinson & Rivera.
Read the full press release: William Morris Gallery Archive Collection Press Release
July 2023
Radical Landscapes – 21 October 2023 – 18 February 2024
William Morris Gallery is pleased to announce Radical Landscapes, an exhibition that will explore the natural world as a space for artistic inspiration, social connection, and political and cultural protest through the lens of William Morris, one of Britain’s earliest and most influential environmental thinkers. Organised in collaboration with Tate Liverpool, the exhibition will display work spanning two centuries and feature more than 60 works by artists including JMW Turner, Claude Cahun, Hurvin Anderson, Derek Jarman, Jeremy Deller and Veronica Ryan. Delving into ideas of freedom, exploitation and trespass, the exhibition will reflect on how British landscapes have been read, accessed and used across social, class and racial lines, as well as the current global climate emergency, starting from Morris’ own relationship to and love for the land.
Through the works on display and an expansive public programme, visitors will be encouraged to engage with the Gallery’s surrounding borough of Waltham Forest, once a rural outpost and now an urban London borough, where Morris was born and which shaped his environmental and political views.
Read the full press release: Radical Landscapes_Press Release
June 2023
Dialled In returns to Walthamstow in July 2023
Dialled In returns on 22nd July 2023 with its latest offering, Dialled In: The Park – an all-day arts and music festival showcasing South Asian culture, arts and creativity. A celebration of community, it will take place across two stages in Lloyd Park, Walthamstow, and at William Morris Gallery, allowing audiences to experience Dialled In outdoors for the first time. It also marks Dialled In’s return to E17 where the team has been steadily growing its community presence. Support for the festival will be provided by the London Borough of Waltham Forest.
Read the full press release: Dialled In Press Release 2023
January 2023
Ashish: Fall in Love and Be More Tender – 1 April – 10 September 2023
William Morris Gallery is pleased to announce the first major survey of fashion designer Ashish Gupta. Ashish: Fall in Love and Be More Tender will provide an unprecedented overview of Ashish’s subversive and playful practice, showcasing over 60 designs created by his eponymous London-based fashion label over the past 20 years. Synonymous with glamour, maximalist design and painstaking craftsmanship, Ashish is a pioneering voice in the fashion industry whose work challenges stereotypes and foregrounds equitable representation, exploring the role that clothing can play in the politics of optimism and inclusion. Known for working in bold, joyful colours and creating clothes which are hand-embroidered in sequins and beads, Ashish’s designs have been worn by global icons including Beyonce, Debbie Harry, Hunter Schafer, Rihanna, Charli XCX and Taylor Swift. The exhibition will also feature a specially commissioned film and new photography by Ashish Shah, a rising star in fashion documentation.
Read the full press release: Press Release_Ashish at William Morris Gallery_1 April 2023