Art made by the people for the people

The popular Arts and Crafts movement that enveloped the USA and Great Britain from roughly 1880 to 1920 was a response to the great industrialization of the late 19th century. Many leading thinkers, poets, artists & designers of the time looked to return to the handmade, in which craftsmanship was paramount, design was nature-inspired , and construction methods were straightforward, simple, and undisguised.

Noted English art critic John Ruskin had sounded the movement’s founding principles several decades earlier.

He had argued for working conditions that considered the happiness of craftsmen. Pattern designer William Morris put Ruskin’s theories into practice when he established Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. in 1861 to create everything from furniture to wallpaper to fabrics and tapestries.

Another craftsman to put the ideals of Arts and Crafts into action was Charles Robert Ashbee, who established his Guild of Handicraft in 1888 in London’s East End slums. The goal was to produce furniture, metalware, and jewellery in an atmosphere of fair wages, good working conditions, and co-operation.

Liberty & Co. of London introduced the movement to the fashionable masses of the time with chairs, plant stands and bookcases, mainly in oak and mahogany.

Individual designers of the day included potter William De Morgan, whose earthenware vases often suggested Persian influences.

Charles Rennie Mackintosh, also considered a father of Art Nouveau period was another leader at this time. From his Glasgow workshop, he produced many impressive pieces of furniture. His high-backed chairs, especially are considered one his signature pieces.

No more well known signature is that of Robert “Mouseman” Thompson. His wonderful, clever and unique selling point was to include a carved mouse on the side of every piece of furniture he made.

If you own anything which you think might be suitable for one of our specialist sales please contact Matthew Baker on 01234 266366 or antiques@peacockauction.co.uk.
Alternatively, attend one of our Valuation Days where clients are invited to bring along items for complimentary auction advice without obligation.