arts and crafts movement
Emily Huamani
Comm2290
A&C Movement Essay
The Arts and Crafts Movement began and developed in the 19th century in the British Isles. It was led by artist/wrier William Morris who was influenced by the writings of John Ruskin and Augustus Pugin. The minority class who had become upset with the Industrial Revolution and its mass production of decorative arts followed the movement. Their anger was because they felt with the advancement of machines that decorative design had become of lesser quality as well as a protest against the conditions of which they were being created. Their focus was to emphasize a new appreciation of traditional craftsmanship using simple forms. They wanted the designs to not only be enjoyed by the consumer but by the creator as well. The philosophy of John Ruskin was his social criticism of machinery and he believed it was the root of social evil. He was concerned about the decrease of rural handicrafts and the traditional skills being lost through modernization.
The main controversy raised by the movement was how practical it could be in the modern world. Progressives claimed that it was trying to relive the past and that the Arts and Crafts Movement could not be taken as practical in mass urban and industrialized society. But the ideas still managed to spread throughout all of Europe and eventually to North America. Though in Europe the movement stood for anti-industrialism in America the ideas were slightly different. They embraced the movement because they felt it could be enable a new experience in industrial consumerism. The movement flourished in the art’s era of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, especially in the middle class. It initiated the attempts to reinterpret European arts and crafts ideals for architecture and furniture. The designs emphasized the qualities of the materials being used, often using patterns inspired by British flora. They were influenced by the Gothic Revival and were interested in medieval
Comm2290
A&C Movement Essay
The Arts and Crafts Movement began and developed in the 19th century in the British Isles. It was led by artist/wrier William Morris who was influenced by the writings of John Ruskin and Augustus Pugin. The minority class who had become upset with the Industrial Revolution and its mass production of decorative arts followed the movement. Their anger was because they felt with the advancement of machines that decorative design had become of lesser quality as well as a protest against the conditions of which they were being created. Their focus was to emphasize a new appreciation of traditional craftsmanship using simple forms. They wanted the designs to not only be enjoyed by the consumer but by the creator as well. The philosophy of John Ruskin was his social criticism of machinery and he believed it was the root of social evil. He was concerned about the decrease of rural handicrafts and the traditional skills being lost through modernization.
The main controversy raised by the movement was how practical it could be in the modern world. Progressives claimed that it was trying to relive the past and that the Arts and Crafts Movement could not be taken as practical in mass urban and industrialized society. But the ideas still managed to spread throughout all of Europe and eventually to North America. Though in Europe the movement stood for anti-industrialism in America the ideas were slightly different. They embraced the movement because they felt it could be enable a new experience in industrial consumerism. The movement flourished in the art’s era of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, especially in the middle class. It initiated the attempts to reinterpret European arts and crafts ideals for architecture and furniture. The designs emphasized the qualities of the materials being used, often using patterns inspired by British flora. They were influenced by the Gothic Revival and were interested in medieval