Thursday 21 November 2019

Lecture: Guild Park and Gardens


Guild Park and Gardens: Past, Present, and Future
Thursday November 21st, 2019. 7:00pm
University College, University of Toronto, Room 140
15 King's College Circle, Toronto
(Queen's Park Subway station)


John Mason will present an illustrated lecture on the history and future of Guild Park and Gardens (formerly known as Guildwood Park) including the inspiration its founders drew from the Arts and Crafts movement and their own passion for natural and architectural heritage preservation. 

Inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, Rosa and Spencer Clark in 1932 decided to model their recently purchased property into the Canadian equivalent of Roycroft. They duly founded the “Guild of All Arts” on the Scarborough bluffs, providing a home and a forum for artists and artisans. Many of these were contemporaries or students of members of the Group and Seven whose influence is evident in the work produced on the site. Over ensuing decades, the Clarks built a reputation as patrons of the arts and preservationists, amassing a huge art collection and preserving architectural fragments from dozens of demolished buildings in Toronto.

Monday 11 November 2019

Loewe: William De Morgan Collection


Premiering November 14, 2019.

 The work of British ceramicist William De Morgan is celebrated in LOEWE's new capsule collection conceived as a world of colour, texture and playful imagination.

De Morgan was renowned for his Arts and Crafts tile designs. Now his fantastic creatures and floral arabesques are reimagined in this capsule collection of ready-to-wear, accessories and charms for both men and women. Certain details are enlarged on coats and bags, while others are hand-stitched onto oversized scarves and knitwear. Some garments, such as a woollen dragon’s tail, or a horned knitted beanie, remake the wearer as a monster themselves. This is a collection in which the imagination is set free, and the magical is blended with the everyday.

Wednesday 6 November 2019

The Victorian House of Arts and Crafts


A new series by the BBC!

In a timely social experiment, six modern day craftspeople are sent 'back in time' to live in a remote country house where they immerse themselves in the idealistic dreams of Arts and Crafts visionaries.
A group of 21st-century crafters move in to a late-1800s Victorian Arts & Crafts commune in the Welsh hills to renovate four of the key rooms in the house.

Find it online HERE, or it will air in Canada on TVO Wednesday December 25th at 7pm.


Monday 28 October 2019

Holiday Dinner!




Mark your calendars!

This year the WMSC will once again hold its annual Holiday Dinner at the UofT Faculty Club's Wedgwood Room!

UofT Faculty Club
41 Willcocks Street
Wedgwood Room

December 17th, 2019
5:30 pm

The buffet dinner will include Vegetarian and Gluten-Free options.

Cost is inclusive of all taxes but excluding the bar.
$60 for Members
$65 for Non-members.



Download forms here and mail them to us with cheque enclosed.



Or fill in the Google form AND pay online:






Select

Questions? Email us at info@wmsc.ca

260 Fingers


260 FINGERS IN AN INVITATIONAL EXHIBITION AND SALE OF THE WORK OF 26 OUTSTANDING CLAY ARTISTS AND POTTERS MAINLY FROM ONTARIO AND QUEBEC.



Opening/Vernissage: Friday, November 8 6-9pm
Saturday, November 9 and Sunday, November 10, 10am-5pm

Vernissage: vendredi, le 8 novembre de 18h à 21h
Samedi et dimanche, les 9 et 10 novembre de 10h à 17h

Free Admission Entrée libre

LOCATION

The Glebe Community Centre
175 Third Avenue, Ottawa, ON K1S 2K2

Wednesday 16 October 2019

Call for Emerging Scholar Speaker Series



The William Morris Society of Canada is looking for proposals from young and emerging scholars on the broad subject of the Arts and Crafts.
The topics may include, but are not limited to: the Pre-Raphaelites, William Morris (life and works), the handmade, craft, literature, poetry, textiles, furniture, ceramics, intersectional feminism, woodcarving, fashion, Socialism, popular culture, etc.

The WMSC asks that you submit a 250 word proposal to info@wmsc.ca with the subject headline: "Emerging Scholar Speaker Series".
If you are an undergraduate, we ask for a 20-minute presentation. Graduate students and emerging scholars (within the first 5 years of your career) we ask for a 1-hour presentation.
Presentations will be given in Toronto, scheduled in 2020.

Due date is November 15th, 2019.

Monday 23 September 2019

William Morris Tattoos

At our recent AGM, there was a brief discussion on Morris patterns coming back into fashion, and taking surprising forms.
Looking to William Morris-inspired tattoos, their depictions and interpretations are unique and lovely.

Minimalist design


Delicate with colour!

Bold statement

Vibrant colour!

Arm sleeve


A stunning use of colour

Monochromatic beauty

A stunning portrait from the National Trust (UK)

A wee Strawberry Thief


"Love is Enough"

Brilliant use of colour

Beautiful blue foliage

This mannequin design is perfect for a tattoo idea!



Wednesday 4 September 2019

AGM and A Talk on African Textiles

A Reminder about our Annual General Meeting
Monday September 16th, 2019. 7pm

Location: Textile Museum of Canada
55 Centre Avenue, Toronto 

A presentation on African Textiles follows:



Tent blanket from Mali

Following the Annual General Meeting, a presentation by Barbara McCann focusing on the historical background of cloth trading and migration of people, the use of cloth to express cultural values and important events, socio-economic issues including gender-based roles which have influenced textile development, as well as amazing innovations and use of recycled materials.

Getting there: St Patrick subway station

Monday 26 August 2019

Summer Book Club: Pre-Raphaelite Girl Gang


Our summer reading is Kristy Stonell Walker's Pre-Raphaelite Girl Gang. Featuring "Fifty Makers, Shakers and Heartbreakers from the Victorian Era," this book highlights the women that were integral to the Pre-Raphaelite movement. 
A fun, accessible read, it has humour and some great details!

Have you read it? Let us know your thoughts!

Monday 8 July 2019

John Ruskin and the Beginning of the Arts & Crafts Movement

Hello to WMSC Members and Friends

The Roycroft Campus at 39 South Grove Street
East Aurora, NY 14052  (30 km SE of Buffalo)
announces a special event on September 13 and 14, 2019
celebrating the life of John Ruskin, 200 years after his birth
JOHN RUSKIN and the BEGINNING of the ARTS & CRAFTS MOVEMENT

(  --  Please note this conference is NOT a WMSC event  --  )

There is no fee to attend the program of this Ruskin/Roycroft event 
which is co-sponsored by the 
North American Chapter of the Guild of St George 
and the Roycroft Print Shop.

Overnight accommodation, meals, etc. 
are at your own arrangement and expense.

Below are details about the program and registration.


The Guild of St George and The Roycroft Print Shop would like to invite you to our
celebration of John Ruskin’s 200 th birthday on September 13-14, 2019. It is much more
than a birthday celebration, however. We are gathering together the resources of the
Guild and Roycroft, and offering to our new century, as both organizations did at the
beginning of the 20th Century, a way to proceed. We would like you to be part of this
celebration, and also part of great things we plan for the future. Hear about the workings
of the Guild in England. Hear about Roycroft and how it works every day to strengthen
the Arts and Crafts Movement in America. Hear about and tour the Roycroft Print Shop,
the only print and graphic arts organization in the world devoted exclusively to the work
of the Arts and Crafts Movement.

The program, FOR WHICH THERE IS NO CHARGE, will open at 630pm on Friday night,
September 13th , with refreshments, a reception and a keynote address by Dr. James
Spates. Dr. Spates, who was a Professor of Sociology at Hobart and William Smith
Colleges for many years, is a world-renowned speaker and advocate of the ideas of John
Ruskin. Earlier this year, he gave a similar talk at the annual Arts and Crafts Conference in
Asheville, North Carolina. If you missed that lecture, you can now hear a similar
presentation. If you heard it, you will now be able to speak with Dr. Spates and ask you
own questions.

On Saturday, starting at 9am, you will hear a very interesting variety of presentations.
Peter Potter, a Roycroft Renaissance Artisan in Photography, will introduce you to his Arts
and Crafts Photography. This is important since, as some of you know, John Ruskin was an
avid photographer at a time when this field was first developing and allowing people to
record nature and the important works of man exactly the way they existed. Paul
Dawson, a very active member of the Guild of St George in the UK, will be giving an
important lecture on the work of George Allen, who was John Ruskin’s personal
publisher, and about William Morris who established the Kelmscott Press, and their
pioneering work in the Private Press Movement. This will be a unique lecture in the fields
of printing and publishing and the material covered may not be readily available
anywhere in the US. Professor Kay Walter will tell us how she is teaching and promoting
the work of John Ruskin today in rural Arkansas. You will be introduced to the workings of
the Roycroft Print Shop and see how we use some of yesterday’s techniques to get our
messages out today. There will then be a panel discussion, with audience participation,
where you can ask questions and state you own ideas for our Arts and Crafts Movement
of the future.

The North American Branch of the Guild of St George
and The Roycroft Print Shop

Please print the REGISTRATION FORM here.

See the FULL PROGRAM here.

Saturday 22 June 2019

Canadian Society of Decorative Arts Symposium

Thursday September 26 - 29th, 2019, 
Kingston, Ontario
Agnes Etherton Art Centre


An invitation from our friends with the Canadian Society of Decorative Arts
Join the many decorative arts collectors, experts and enthusiasts who plan to be among the delegates in Kingston, September 26-29th.  Early bird rates end June 30th!

Honouring the past and learning about current practice in the decorative arts is reflected in this year’s theme: Trends and Traditions. To that end, the CSDA/CCAD Programming Committee has been hard at work planning and delivering an exceptional line up of lectures and events led by a stellar group of regional, national and international scholars, experts, curators, collectors and leading contemporary makers of decorative arts. Symposium delegates will also enjoy exclusive, behind-the-scenes access to private and public collections and studios, and visits to important sites and cultural attractions in the area on guided walking tours.

For more information:  https://csda-ccad.org/Events

Monday 17 June 2019

Evergreen Brick Works Tour!

 The Brick-Making Machine

Chimney

Our guide

Purple-Eyed Susan Sculpture on the side of the building

Old photograph of Toronto


Photos courtesy of WMSC member Heather Johnson.


Saturday 8 June 2019

Tapestry of Spirit: The Torah Stitch By Stitch Project

Rona Kosansky; cross-stitch on aida cloth; 13” wide; “Just before his death Moses views the Promised Land from Mt. Nebo. God would not allow him to enter because of an earlier transgression (Deuteronomy 34:1-4)”. Design courtesy of Ann Logan; image courtesy of Torah Stitch by Stitch.


The Textile Museum of Canada presents Tapestry of Spirit, from June 12 – November 17, 2019


Tapestry of Spirit presents the ambitious and inclusive social project to cross stitch the first five books of the Bible as well as selections from the Scriptures and Qur’an, reflecting on the theme of creation. It is an immersive installation that has been collectively created by almost 1500 volunteers of many faiths, under the artistic leadership of Temma Gentles (Toronto). Visitors will journey through nearly 1000 panels in three languages (Hebrew, Greek and Arabic) including illuminations and embellishments by stitchers from 28 countries who have interpreted these ancient narratives into contemplative, often highly personal expressions.
The award-winning documentary short film Stitchers: Tapestry of Spirit (directed by Tassie Notar and produced by 90th Parallel) will play throughout the exhibition.
Opening reception: Wednesday June 12, 5 - 8:30 PM. All are welcome!

Monday 3 June 2019

Edit-a-thons aim to ensure craftswomen's legacy on internet

Ditchling museum will hold Wikipedia-editing sessions to redress gender imbalance


Elizabeth Peacock (left). Photograph: Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts

The crafts industry has become the latest sector to attempt to tackle the internet’s gender imbalance, after a museum warned the legacy of the UK’s most important craftswomen is at risk of being forgotten.
Ditchling Museum of Art and Craft is to hold a series of Wikipedia edit-a-thons in June. It open its doors to volunteers who will be taught how to create and edit Wikipedia pages to include significant 20th-century craftswomen. The edit-a-thon is one of hundreds taking place around the world aiming to mitigate the lack of information about women online.
Abby Butcher, communications manager at Ditchling museum, says craftswomen are “undoubtedly” at risk of being forgotten and suffer from gender bias that sees male artists such as Eric Gill dominate discussions of crafts history.
“It’s the usual factors you’d expect: they’re women and they were working in the early 20th century, and there were a lot of male craftspeople who were dominating that scene. That’s the obvious patriarchy argument,” says Butcher, who believes the situation is exacerbated by the fact that less than 10% of Wikipedia editors are women.
“The story of Ditchling is dominated by Eric Gill because he was such a big figure but there are a lot of hidden stories. You can trace the impact that a lot of these lesser-known artists have had across the arts and craft movement – there’s this lineage.”
The museum is holding two edit-a-thons, which have become popular ways for groups to tackle the dearth of female figures on Wikipedia pages in areas such as science and museum curation, on 1 June. Butcher believes for the younger generation, the internet is a vital research tool and if artists don’t have a presence, they can quickly become obsolete.
“So much important history is in out-of-print books or in people’s heads so it’s great we have the chance to get that down,” she said. “I think there’s a risk with Generation Z that if it isn’t online, it doesn’t count.
Read the rest on the Guardian website.

Tuesday 21 May 2019

Tour of the Historic Brick Works in Toronto’s Don Valley

Sunday 9th of June 2019, 2 pm

Come to Evergreen Brick Works and explore the 130-year-old factory, transformed
by environmental charity Evergreen into a sustainable office complex and environmental
community centre. Our heritage-themed tour will explain the origins and architecture of
the brick factory, the process of brick-making, and tell some of the workers’ stories.



Tour fee: $14. Payable at the site. (Cash only please. Exact change appreciated.)
Please reserve by May 28 so tour arrangements can be made. E-mail: info@wmsc.ca.

Our gathering spot for tours is the Young Welcome Centre. 

Getting there:


A TTC bus departs from Davisville Station, 28 Southbound approximately every 20 minutes.

A free Evergreen Brick Works shuttle bus departs from the parkette on Erindale Avenue, just north of the Broadview subway station (Not in the station). It leaves on the hour and half hour on Sundays.

There is also paid parking at the Brick Works site.

Come down early and you can visit artisans’ booths on-site as well as having lunch beforehand at the Sunday market local food court, open 10am-3pm. You can pick from a broad array of options, including Persian food, Tibetan momos, Mexican street food, tapioca crepes, Turkish stuffed flatbread and churros with chocolate sauce. 

Background info

The Don Valley Brick Works (known now as the Evergreen Brick Works) is a former quarry and industrial site located in the Don River Valley. The Don Valley Brick Works operated for nearly 100 years and provided bricks used to construct many well-known Toronto landmarks, such as Casa Loma, Osgoode Hall, Massey Hall, and the Ontario Legislature. Since the closure of the original factory, the quarry has been converted into a city park which includes a series of naturalized ponds, while the buildings have been restored and opened as an environmentally focused community and cultural centre by Evergreen, a national charity dedicated to restoring nature in urban environments.

In 2009, National Geographic Traveler named Evergreen Brick Works one of the 10 finalists in its Geotourism Challenge 2009, "a global competition of tourism-related projects that promote natural and cultural heritage while improving the well-being of the local people". The 10 finalists were chosen from 610 entries from 81 countries.  In early 2017, Evergreen launched the redevelopment of the historic Kiln Building, creating a new hub for people across all sectors to collaborate in building sustainable cities. The project is one of the first in Canada to set and strive for a carbon-neutral target.

Friday 26 April 2019

Tour of St Thomas Anglican Church


Join us for a Tour of St Thomas Anglican Church!
Saturday May 4th, 2019, 2 pm
383 Huron St



The church is an Arts and Crafts building designed by architect and parishioner Eden Smith (1858–1949) and was opened on January 17, 1893. The Memorial First World War Baptistery with Bromsgrove Guild stained glass windows was completed in 1922. 

The tour will be a joint one, with the rector, The Revd Mark Andrews and Dr. Carl Benn.



Getting here: TTC (click this link)
Take the subway to St George and exit via the St George exit (near the Bata Shoe Museum). 
Walk South to Bloor St, walk West one block to Huron Street, head South to St Thomas Anglican Church.


Wednesday 24 April 2019

On the Origins of the Kelmscott Chaucer Typeface

Letters from the 15th Century:
On the Origins of the Kelmscott Chaucer Typeface

A Study, with Specimen Leaves, of the Influence of the Early
German Printers on William Morris’ Masterpiece.



This unique leaf book combines three elements—a significant private press production, a substantial
scholarly commentary that contributes to a further understanding of printing history, and a collection
of five leaves: one from the Kelmscott Press “Works of Geoffrey Chaucer” and four from books issued by German printers Morris most admired.

Written and issued by Phillip J. Pirages, the essay has been produced by gifted professionals; the
study addresses a topic of significance to typophiles in a considerably more thoroughgoing way than
has been done before; and the assemblage of leaves represents a powerful visual reinforcement of the
commentary.

The text will present information about Morris’ life and library, pull together previous relevant
observations in an entirely new way, and provide remarks about the early printers and the leaves
included as part of this production. Most important, the study will show, as objectively as possible,
likenesses between the early letterforms and those of the Chaucer by comparing each of Morris’ letters with each of the corresponding letters in the typefaces of Schoeffer, Mentelin, Zainer, and Koberger. And because of the assemblage of leaves, readers will not only be able to learn from the text about the influence on Morris of his typographic forebears, but also to compare with their own eyes the resemblances between the Kelmscott leaf and the leaves from four centuries earlier.



For more information, visit www.pirages.com and enter inventory number
ST15039 in the search box on the top right side of the home page.
Please contact us to reserve a copy at 503-472-0476 or info@pirages.com.


Friday 12 April 2019

Morris & Co collaboration with Selamat


Morris designs in the media once again!

Morris' designs have seemingly once again captured the popular imagination, appearing in films and design shows, and have recently been part of a number of reimaginings and collaborations across clothing and furniture.

"A selection of Morris & Co.’s internationally recognized designs have been reimagined by Selamat..."

What are your opinions on the pared-down look of muted tones and simplified designs?

Here are just some of our favourites:








Visit the website here:


Sunday 24 March 2019

WMSC 185th Birthday Celebration!

Thank you to everyone that cake to our symposium, and celebrated Morris' 185th Birthday with us!
The toast this year was given by Max Donnelly, "Fellowship is heaven" indeed!

The cake pattern this year was Seaweed!









The cake was chocolate with a mascarpone-black currant filling!
The cake was made by WMSC Board Member Lera Kotsyuba!

Watch the video below to see two days of work condensed into 4 minutes!


Tuesday 5 March 2019

Symposium 2019: Arts and Crafts Furniture



Arts & Crafts Furniture: Classic A&C to Contemporary Artisinal
Saturday March 23rd, 2019



Programme

10am - Max Donnelly - Morris and the making of Arts and Crafts furniture in Britain

11am - Brad Christakos - The Arts and Crafts Movement in Canadian Domestic Decorative Arts

11:45 LUNCH

1:15pm - Peter Fleming - Part of the Furniture

2pm - Leigh Dotey

2:15 - Q & A

2:45pm - 185th birthday party for William Morris and CAKE!


DOWNLOAD the registration form HERE due MARCH 15th, 2019!


OR

Buy Tickets online below:



Attendees