William Morris & The Kelmscott Press – A Collector’s Guide

William Morris (1834 – 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, translator, publisher and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditional British textile arts and methods of production. His literary contributions helped to establish the modern fantasy genre, while he helped win acceptance of socialism in fin de siècle Great Britain.

Morris was fascinated with the idyllic Medievalist depictions of rural life which appeared in the paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites, and spent large sums of money purchasing such artworks. Burne-Jones shared this interest, but took it further by becoming an apprentice to one of the foremost Pre-Raphaelite painters, Dante Gabriel Rossetti; the three soon became close friends.

In January 1891, Morris began renting a cottage near to Kelmscott House, No. 16 Upper Mall in Hammersmith, which would serve as the first premises of the Kelmscott Press. Before publishing its first work, Morris ensured that he had mastered the techniques of printing and secured the supplies of hand-made paper and vellum necessary for production. When the press closed in 1898 after his death, it had produced over 50 works. Devoted to the production of books which he deemed beautiful, Morris was artistically influenced by the illustrated manuscripts and early printed books of Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Before publishing its first work, Morris ensured that he had mastered the techniques of printing and secured the supplies of hand-made paper and vellum necessary for production.

The first of these was one of Morris’s own novels, The Story of the Glittering Plain, which was published in May 1891 and soon sold out. The Kelmscott Press would go on to publish 23 of Morris’s books, more than those of any other author^. The press published editions of works by Keats, Shelley, Ruskin, and Swinburne, as well as copies of various Medieval texts. Some of the Press’ books were illustrated by Burne-Jones. The Press’ magnum opus was the Kelmscott Chaucer, which had taken years to complete and included 87 illustrations by Burne-Jones.

William Morris is recognised as one of the most significant cultural figures of Victorian Britain. He was best known in his lifetime as a poet, although he posthumously became better known for his designs and the Kelmscott Press he founded in 1891. The William Morris Society founded in 1955 is devoted to his legacy, while multiple biographies and studies of his work have been published. Many of the buildings associated with his life are open to visitors, much of his work can be found in art galleries and museums, and his designs are still in production.

The Kelmscott Press – Published books: 1891-1898

Bibliography off all books published by the Kelmscott Press during its existence. Does not include his unpublished works produced after his death.

Gallery of William Morris & The Kelmscott Press Works

Samples of books and designs published by the Kelmscott Press.

Reference:

• Wikipedia
• A Bibliography of the Kelmscott Press by William S. Peterson, 1985