7th March 2024 – In the Garden with William Morris – Speaker Fiona Rose

Our first speaker of 2024 was Fiona Rose who gave an excellent presentation on the life of William Morris, one of the founders of the Arts and Crafts Movement. He was greatly influenced by the nature which surrounded him as a child in the garden of his home,
Woodford Hall next to Epping Forest. Morris loved the trees, plants and the river that ran beside the house. He was a great reader and one book he was inspired by was “The Herbal or General history of Plants.” Morris went to Oxford University to study theology but was fascinated by medieval history and poetry which led to his lifelong friendship with Edward Burne – Jones a fellow student and an artist. After a brief time working in an architect’s office, Morris decided to begin a career as an artist. He married Jane Burden, and they needed a home. He built the Red House which was designed in a medieval style by Philip Webb around the established orchard on the land. Garden “rooms” were made by sectioning areas with wattle fencing made by local craftsmen. Native and traditional plants were used, jasmine, honeysuckle and wild roses. Morris had very strong views on how a garden should look, they should contain beauty, imagination and order. “Large or small, it (the garden) should look both orderly and rich. It should by no means imitate either the wilfulness or the wildness
of Nature but should look like a thing never to be seen except near a house, it should in fact, look like part of the house”.
In 1834 Morris rented Kelmscott Manor and declared that it was Heaven on Earth, it was here that many of his artistic designs were inspired. Morris still lived here when he died at the age of 66 years. Both properties are open to the public, but tickets need to be pre booked.

Heather Scally

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