So for now I would like to show you Mr William Morris in my own home town! This is especially for all our friends who came on the UK tours this year.....they heard it more than once...."You know at home we have one of the biggest collections of William Morris furnishings in the world"!! So here is the proof!
I often get emails from people coming to Adelaide and it is always my pleasure to show interstate and international visitors not only our city, but also all things William Morris.....so once again I got to do this yesterday....lovely to meet you Jayne and hope you enjoyed the day!
We start at Carrick Hill....no photos allowed inside but we must have spent at least 30 minutes in front of the best embroidered screens ever! All three were designed by one of Morris's partners John Henry Dearle. The outside is just as beautiful...well not quite as good as the Morris embroideries!
On the way to the Art Gallery we stopped to see some William Morris stained glass windows.......just before a wedding so there was no time to photograph. And then on to our very own Art Gallery of South Australia........
The entire Morris room is covered in Willow wallpaper...and I heard that the Gallery shop is about to get a Christmas make-over and is to be wallpapered in Brer Rabbit wallpaper.....I will make sure I get a photo for you!
This is the very special silk cloth designed by May Morris especially for Joanna Barr Smith as a thank you and May named it 'Australia'.......
We also have two large Tiffany windows in the Morris room............
A Charles Voysey textile.........
Charles Ashby from Chipping Campden......and we went there on the UK WM tour!!
Several original Morris curtain drops.............
Arts and Crafts piano.........
And finally some close-ups of another incredible embroidery designed by May Morris..............
I hope you enjoyed a small part of our collection. It is 10 years since it was all out on display at once so here's hoping we don't have to wait too long for that to happen again.
Meanwhile I have an IMPORTANT MESSAGE.......I must tell you that the dates for the second 2013 UK William Morris Tour have changed to September 29th - October 9th. This will be the last chance to join me on this William Morris tour because Helen is organising other exciting adventures for 2014 and beyond. So if you have been thinking about it, I suggest you click on the link and contact Helen to put your name down - the tours sell out fast and this is your last chance!
As a, young man Baillie Scott (Manxman piano) was destined to move to Australia to manage his family's large sheep herding station. He decided not to, stayed in England and studied architecture. And the rest is Arts & Crafts history.
ReplyDelete