Editing William Morris (section)

== Legacy ==
[[File:WilliamMorrisTombstone.JPG|thumb|Morris family tombstone at [[Kelmscott]], designed by Webb]]

President of the William Morris Society Hans Brill referred to Morris as "one of the outstanding figures of the nineteenth century",{{sfn|Brill|1996|p=7}} while Linda Parry termed him the "single most important figure in British textile production".{{sfn|Parry|1983|p=6}}
At the time of Morris's death, his poetry was known internationally and his company's products were found all over the world.{{sfn|Vallance|1897|p=1}} In his lifetime, he was best known as a poet, although by the late twentieth century he was primarily known as a designer of wallpapers and fabrics.{{sfn|Brill|1996|p=7}}

He was a major contributor to the revival of traditional British [[textile arts]] and methods of production.<ref>{{cite book |title=William Morris in the Twenty-First Century |first1=Phillippa |last1=Bennett |first2=Rosie |last2=Miles |publisher=Peter Lang |location=Oxford |year=2010 |isbn=978-3-0343-0106-0 |page=136 }}</ref> Morris's ethos of production was an influence on the [[Bauhaus]] movement.{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|pp=604–605}} Another aspect of Morris's preservationism was his desire to protect the natural world from the ravages of [[pollution]] and [[industrialism]], causing some historians of the [[Green politics|green movement]] to regard Morris as an important forerunner of modern [[environmentalism]].<ref>{{cite book |author-link=Derek Wall |last=Wall |first=Derek |title=Green history: a reader in environmental literature, philosophy and politics |place=London |publisher=Routledge |year=2004 |pages=9–12, 240, 242–243 |isbn=978-0-415-07925-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author-link=Ramachandra Guha |last=Guha |first=Ramachandra |title=Environmentalism: A Global History |place=London |publisher=Longman |year=2000 |pages=15–16 |isbn=978-0-19-565117-1}}</ref>

Aymer Vallance was commissioned to produce the first biography of Morris, published in 1897, after Morris's death, per the latter's wishes.{{sfn|Vallance|1897|p=vii}} This presented the creation of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings as Morris's greatest achievement.{{sfn|Vallance|1897|p=267}} Morris's next biographer was Burne-Jones's son-in-law [[John William Mackail]], who authored the two-volume ''Life of William Morris'' (1899) in which he provided a sympathetic portrayal of Morris that largely omitted his political activities, treating them as a passing phase that Morris overcame.{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|pp=viii, x}}

MacCarthy's biography, ''William Morris: A Life for Our Time'', was first published by [[Faber and Faber]] in 1994,{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994}} and a paperback edition was published in 2010.{{sfn|MacCarthy|2010}} For the 2013 [[Venice Biennale]], artist Jeremy Deller selected Morris as the subject of a large-scale mural titled "We Sit Starving Amidst our Gold", in which Morris returns from the dead to hurl the yacht of Russian billionaire [[Roman Abramovich]] into the waves of an ocean.<ref name="Mac" /><ref>{{cite news |author=Adrian Searle|title=Venice Biennale: Jeremy Deller's British pavilion declares war on wealth |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/may/28/venice-biennale-jeremy-deller-british-pavilion |access-date=5 October 2014|work=The Guardian|date=28 May 2013}}</ref>

MacCarthy curated the "Anarchy & Beauty" exhibition—a commemoration of Morris's legacy—for the [[National Portrait Gallery, London|National Portrait Gallery]] in 2014, for which she recruited around 70 artists who were required to undertake a test on Morris's ''News from Nowhere'' to be accepted.<ref name="Mac" /> Writing for ''[[The Guardian]]'' prior to the opening of the exhibition on 16 October 2014, MacCarthy asserted:

<blockquote>
Morris has exerted a powerful influence on thinking about art and design over the past century. He has been the constant niggle in the conscience. How can we combat all this luxury and waste? What drove him into revolutionary activism was his anger and shame at the injustices within society. He burned with guilt at the fact that his "good fortune only" allowed him to live in beautiful surroundings and to pursue the work he adored.<ref name="Mac">{{cite news|author1=Fiona MacCarthy|title=William Morris: Beauty and anarchy in the UK|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/oct/03/how-william-morris-beauty-and-anarchy-uk|access-date=5 October 2014|work=The Guardian|date=3 October 2014}}</ref></blockquote>

"Anarchy & Beauty"{{'}}s arts and crafts section featured Morris's own copy of the French edition of Karl Marx's ''Das Kapital'' handbound in a gold-tooled leather binding that MacCarthy describes as "the ultimate example of Morris's conviction that perfectionism of design and craftsmanship should be available to everyone."<ref name="Mac" />

In 2016, [[Arts Catalyst]] commissioned British artist and academic David Mabb to produce a work responding to the use of Morris' designs in the living quarters aboard British [[Vanguard-class submarine|nuclear submarines]] from the 1960s to the 1990s.<ref name="ArtsCatalyst">{{cite web |title=A Provisional Memorial to Nuclear Disarmament |url=http://www.artscatalyst.org/provisional-memorial-nuclear-disarmament |website=Arts Catalyst |access-date=7 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170626022644/http://www.artscatalyst.org/provisional-memorial-nuclear-disarmament |archive-date=26 June 2017}}</ref> The resulting work, ''A Provisional Monument to Nuclear Disarmament'', was exhibited first at [[Culture_of_Plymouth#Museums,_art_galleries_and_historic_buildings|KARST]] in Plymouth and later at the Bildmuseet in Umea, Sweden.<ref name="bulletin">{{cite web |last1=Mabb |first1=David |title=Protest and survive: Reclaiming William Morris from Britain's nuclear fleet |url=https://thebulletin.org/2016/09/protest-and-survive-reclaiming-william-morris-from-britains-nuclear-fleet/ |website=[[Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]] |date=20 September 2016 |access-date=7 April 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Perpetual Uncertainty |url=https://www.bildmuseet.umu.se/en/exhibition/perpetual-uncertainty/22269 |website=Bildmuseet.umu.se |access-date=7 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170712162605/https://www.bildmuseet.umu.se/en/exhibition/perpetual-uncertainty/22269 |archive-date=12 July 2017 |date=2016}}</ref>

In 2025, the [[William Morris Gallery]] opened the exhibition ''Morris Mania'', examining how Morris' designs became globally recognised.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wainwright |first1=Oliver |title=Curtains, wellies, nuclear subs and a tsar's palace: how William Morris mania swept the world |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/apr/07/william-morris-mania-nuclear-subs-tsars-palace |website=[[The Guardian]] |date=7 April 2025 |access-date=7 April 2025}}</ref>

=== Notable collections and house museums ===
[[File:Blue plaque outside Red House.jpg|thumb|The [[blue plaque]] erected outside the Red House]]

A number of galleries and museums house important collections of Morris's work and decorative items commissioned from Morris & Co. The [[William Morris Gallery]] in [[Walthamstow]], England, is a public museum devoted to Morris's life, work and influence.<ref>{{Cite news |title=News from Waltham Forest |date=21 April 2007 |url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/news/story/0,,2062448,00.html |newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref><ref name="walthamforest8" /><ref name="walthamforest9" /> The [[William Morris Society]] is based at Morris's final London home, [[Kelmscott House]], [[Hammersmith]], and is an international members society, museum and venue for lectures and other Morris-related events.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://williammorrissociety.org/|title=Welcome|website=The William Morris Society|access-date=10 August 2018}}</ref> The [[Art Gallery of South Australia]] is "fortunate in holding the most comprehensive collection of Morris & Co. furnishings outside Britain".<ref name="Menz 2002" /> The collection includes books, embroideries, tapestries, fabrics, wallpapers, drawings and sketches, furniture and stained glass, and forms the focus of two published works (produced to accompany special exhibitions).<ref name="Menz 2002" /><ref name="Menz 1994" />

The former "green dining room" at the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] is now its "Morris Room". The V&A's British Galleries house other decorative works by Morris and his associates.<ref name="william0" />

One of the meeting rooms in the [[Oxford Union]], decorated with the wallpaper in his style, is named the Morris Room.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://conference-oxford.com/venues/conference/the-oxford-union|title=The Oxford Union |website=Conference Oxford|access-date=10 August 2018}}</ref>

[[Wightwick Manor]] in the [[West Midlands (county)|West Midlands]], England, is a notable example of the Morris & Co. style, with lots of original Morris wallpapers, fabrics, carpets, and furniture, May Morris art and embroidery, De Morgan tiles, and Pre-Raphaelite works of art, managed by the [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]]. [[Standen]] in [[West Sussex]], England, was designed by Webb between 1892 and 1894 and decorated with Morris carpets, fabrics and wallpapers. The illustrator [[Edward Linley Sambourne]] chose to decorate his London family home [[18 Stafford Terrace]] with many Morris & Co wallpapers, which have been preserved and can still be seen today. Morris's homes [[Red House, Bexleyheath|Red House]] and [[Kelmscott Manor]] have been preserved. Red House was acquired by the National Trust in 2003 and is open to the public. Kelmscott Manor is owned by the [[Society of Antiquaries of London]] and is open to the public.<ref name="kelmscottmanor" />

[[The Huntington Library]], Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in [[San Marino, California]], acquired the collection of Morris materials amassed by Sanford and Helen Berger in 1999. The collection includes stained glass, wallpaper, textiles, embroidery, drawings, ceramics, more than 2000 books, original woodblocks, and the complete archives of both Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. and Morris & Co.<ref name="cornered" /> These materials formed the foundation for the 2002 exhibition ''William Morris: Creating the Useful and the Beautiful'' and the 2003 exhibition ''The Beauty of Life: William Morris and the Art of Design'' and accompanying publication.<ref name="huntington" />

A [[Greater London Council]] [[blue plaque]] at Red House commemorates Morris and architect [[Philip Webb]].<ref name="EngHet">{{cite web| url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/discover/blue-plaques/search/red-house|title=MORRIS, WILLIAM (1834–1896) & WEBB, PHILIP (1831–1915)|publisher=English Heritage| access-date=22 October 2012}}</ref>

[[7, Hammersmith Terrace]] is the former home of [[Emery Walker|Sir Emery Walker]], a close friend and colleague of Morris. The house is decorated in the Arts & Crafts style, including with extensive collections of Morris wallpaper, furniture, and textiles. 7, Hammersmith Terrace is operated by the Emery Walker Trust, and is open to the public for tours.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://emerywalker.org.uk/|title=Emery Walker's House|website=Emery Walker's House|access-date=10 August 2018}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Cary Graphic Arts Collection]] at [[Rochester Institute of Technology]] bought William Morris's London-built Hopkinson & Cope Improved [[Albion press]] (No. 6551) at auction for $233,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://printinghistory.org/kelmscott-goudy-press/|title=RIT Wins Auction of the Kelmscott-Goudy Press |website=American Printing History Association|date=10 December 2013|access-date=10 August 2018}}</ref> This printing press was specially reinforced to produce Morris's ''Chaucer'' in 1896. Other owners of Morris's [[Albion press]] include [[Frederic Goudy]] and J. Ben Lieberman.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://printinghistory.org/kelmscottgoudy-press/|title=Christie's to Auction Famed Kelmscott-Goudy Hand Press |website=American Printing History Association|date=16 October 2013|access-date=10 August 2018}}</ref>

In 2023, [[Walthamstow F.C.]] launched a new home football shirt with [[Admiral Sportswear|Admiral Sports]] featuring a William Morris print.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jul/31/east-london-football-club-walthamstow-fc-releases-william-morris-inspired-kit|title=East London football club releases William Morris-inspired kit|first=Caroline|last=Davies|date=31 July 2023|accessdate=9 August 2024|newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref> The shirt was widely regarded as one of the best kit launches of the year and eventually won the Wood Pencil [[Design and Art Direction|D&AD]] award for Printed Graphic.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dandad.org/awards/professional/2024/238184/william-morris-gallery-x-walthamstow-fc-william-morris-inspired-football-kit-by-admiral/|title=William Morris Gallery x Walthamstow FC - William Morris Inspired Football Kit by Admiral &#124; D&AD Awards 2024 Pencil Winner &#124; Applied Print Graphics &#124; D&AD|website=www.dandad.org|accessdate=9 August 2024}}</ref>