March 2009

Crisis in the Decorative Arts: Design 1880-1925

Farnham Decorative and Fine Arts Society met on Tuesday March 17th to hear a talk by Diana Lloyd who is a tutor at the Inchbald School of Design. Her talk was entitled “Crisis in the Decorative Arts: Design 1880-1925".

Diana Lloyd explained that the population expansion and more people wishing to have artefacts for the home designed by craftsmen created the difficulties in the art world in Victorian times. This meant that things would be machine made and be simpler in design than ornate pieces. Christopher Dresser was a champion of design reform in Britain creating household objects that were stark in their simplicity and could easily be manufactured. This was in sharp contrast to the Victorian ideas of over ornate décor. At the same time, the Arts and Crafts Movement led by William Morris was created to assert the independence of individual craftspeople. The designs included furniture, wallpapers and fitted carpets in glorious colours produced with natural dyes. These were costly to reproduce and soon there was a movement to produce textiles without so many different colours and furniture with simpler lines.

There was also an increase in popularity of ornaments and lamps made of glass. These were mass-produced and then painted by hand so people then felt they still had a “one off” design, as little differences would occur. In 1899 Tiffany lamps and windows made of stained glass influenced the décor of houses built at the time. These contrasted with the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh whose interiors were plain, light and uncluttered. He also exhibited progressive modernity in his buildings and public works.

On the continent there were contrasts in design as Gaudi was producing fantastically ornate architecture in Barcelona and the Germans were going for plainer geometric forms. The Bauhaus Imperial School of Architecture had a great influence on the simplicity of line in art of the early 20th Century. The designs created were prototypes for mass production from lamps to buildings. People were encouraged to work in all aspects of the Arts, be able to sell their pieces and so be self-financing.

Ceramics were also involved in the changes at this time. Susie Cooper was the first famous designer of tableware, which was hand painted and not practical to sell cheaply. However the designs were so popular they became the most important ceramics of the 20th Century. This influenced Wedgwood to employ modern designers.  Famous names such as Clarice Clift and Lalique were also influenced by the Art Deco style of the time.

Diana Lloyd gave a fascinating insight into the aspects of a ‘crisis’ that produced many artistic styles that we still appreciate today.

Members were notified of the Study day “Up the garden Path” on April 22nd. Bookings are also being taken for The Victoria Theatre in Woking for ‘An Inspector Calls’ on April 23rd, ‘Turandot’ on June 24th and Glyndebourne on Tour in November.