Announcing This Year's Symposium

Things are warming up at last in Toronto, and last Saturday was particularly special with our society's annual celebration of Morris's birthday (his 183rd!).

Dr. Sheila Latham gave a engrossing and entertaining illustrated presentation to a larger-than-usual audience. The subject was Morris in Oxford, and this was followed (left) by a toast given by Sheila, and birthday cake.

We're still working on other events for the year, but in the meantime, our annual symposium has been announced and it's a special one, co-hosted with The Guild of St. George:

“The hand, the head, and the heart”: Ruskin, Morris, and Craftsmanship Today

Claude T. Bissell Building
Room 205
University of Toronto, St. George Campus
June 3, 2017
10 a.m.- 4 p.m.

This one-day event is jointly hosted by The Guild of St. George and the William Morris Society of Canada. The symposium will focus on the influence of John Ruskin and William Morris on craftsmanship, both in their own time and on those who continue to honour that legacy in their work today. The day will feature scholars and artists from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

For more details, visit our Future Events tab at the top of this page.

Happy 182nd Birthday William!

Last Saturday, a group of about 70 members came together at University College to celebrate the 182nd birthday of William Morris. Potter and porcelain artist Joseph Panacci talked very engagingly and enthusiastically about his career, collaborations, influences, Morris, and his passion for wood-fired pottery, assisted by his lovely daughter April, who operated the gorgeous slide show.

Joseph had brought some of his wares which was a good thing, as after the lecture, most of us were salivating to see his pieces in the flesh, as it were. Sales were brisk and then Joseph gave a lovely birthday toast in honour of Morris and the cakes (three this year!) were cut.

The birthday cakes were built by the society cake team of Laura, James and Gianna. They were inspired by the "Faith, Hope and Charity" stained glass windows designed by Edward Burne-Jones and built by Morris & Co. for Christ Church Cathedral Oxford, although this same design has appeared in other churches too. The cakes were three layers of devil's food chocolate cake, sandwiched with frosting, covered in chocolate fondant, with the centres removed to house battery-operated lighting. You can see a video of the cakes, which shows the lighting quite effectively, on our Facebook page.

Happy Birthday William Morris!

Today is the great man's birthday. But last Saturday, a group of 60 or so WMSC members gathered at University College at the U of T on Saturday to celebrate Morris's birthday as we do every year. We alternate full-day symposiums and lectures, and this year the lecture was titled Architectural Preservation in Upper Canada: A Case Study. Brian Blackstock talked us through the history of his beautiful old mill in Prince Edward County. In the second picture you see Brian with his friend Don McLean who was also part of the presentation. They were both highly engaging and informative. Several members who attended also had the opportunity to visit Brian's mill last fall during a weekend trip to the county, among other lovely spots (including a very popular cidery). Afterwards we gathered in Croft Chapter House and toasted Morris with cake (and someone was coincidentally wearing a scarf with the same pattern, Compton) and lots of great chat.

See you all at our next event in April!

Let's Raise a Slice!

This year we went with "Compton," another densely designed foligage pattern, this time designed by the remarkable John Henry Dearle for Morris & Co. the year of Morris's death in 1896.

Check back soon for more photographs of the day's events!

Celebrating... and Looking Ahead

We're looking forward to seeing members and their guests at today's Birthday Lecture by Brian Blackstock: Architectural Preservation in Upper Canada: a case study. Afterwards we'll toast Morris and get a slice of this year's Morris-inspired birthday cake.

Keep checking back as future events are being finalized including talks on the history of Craft Ontario, Morris and radicalism, a year in the life of Morris, News from Nowhere, a picnic/book club, a fall weekend tour, a cemetary ramble and the Yuletide dinner. Keep coming back to check for details and/or follows us on Twitter and Facebook!

Cake and Croquet at Kelmscott... Count me in!

Not only is Kelmscott Manor newly offering croquet games on their grounds (apparently a favourite Morris family activity), but they've also done something very cool with cake!

We all like cake at the WMSC, right? Well imagine our excitement when we read that the folks at Kelmscott have discovered recipes used by Morris himself: a gingerbread cake and a fruit cake. They're being baked and sold at the Kelmscott Manor shop and they come in lovely decorative tins. Argh! I want one! The picture to the left is from Kelmscott's Twitter feed. Too charming for words! From Kelmscott Manor's website:

"For her Morris fruitcake recipe, Ursula [Evans] follows the original recipe, soaking the vine fruits in brandy, then baking slowly in her Aga before adding a luxury glacé fruit topping. As for the ginger cake, made with golden syrup, Demerara sugar, stem ginger and ground almonds, William Morris noted that it will ‘keep for six months in a tin’, but samples served at a recent tasting disappeared in seconds. ‘Very moist, well risen with a deliciously warm ginger taste’, commented Rob Rees, the Cotswolds Chef, who has been advising Kelmscott Manor on what to do with the newly discovered Morris family recipes.

The cakes will go on sale at Kelmscott Manor from the Easter weekend (19 April), with the proceeds going to support conservation work at the Manor. Sarah Parker, Kelmscott’s Property Manager, says: ‘Morris was all about authenticity and honest craftsmanship; we believe these delicious cakes are part of that legacy.'"

Is anyone going to be in the vicinity this year? Guess what souvenir I'd like? Heh heh...

It's Over, and the Inspiration Lingers

Another great William Morris Birthday Symposium has come and gone. On Saturday, March 22, sixty members came out to University College on the University of Toronto campus and enjoyed an excellently programmed event, all in honour of the man himself, William Morris, on his 180th birthday. Five lecturers - Florence Boos, Veronica Alfano, Letitia Henville, Victor Shea and Christine Bolus-Reichert - made us think, wonder and question. Bill Whitla provided an illustrated treat (regarding The Water of the Wondrous Isles). Congratulations to the WMSC board and the program committee for all their hard work.

And... in exciting news, just before the afternoon session began, members heard from David Lillico on the initial plans for our trip to California next year. I don't think some of us can bear to wait, but we'll have to! The dates are roughly mid-April to early May, 2015. A reminder that WMSC members will get priority to sign up (click on "Become a Member" if you'd like to join us). WMSC trips (which have included Iceland, Britain, France and the U.S.) are always excellent, and always fill up quickly.

And... of course, to end the day in tribute to Morris, Florence Boos gave a lovely toast and cut the cake. This year's offering was based on Strawberry Thief, and the flavour was chocolate. Thanks to member Lera Kotsyuba for tweeting pics of the cake!

For those of you interested in the cake-making process, visit this blog to read about how the cake was made.

WMSC Likes its Cake

If the great line up of speakers and topics wasn't enough to get you excited about attending this year's symposium, here's another reason: cake.

Check out our CAKES tab above for a full reportage on WMSC cakes since 2002!

The Week in Morris (and more)

The Gardiner Museum (@gardinermuseum, left) here in Toronto celebrated its 30th birthday this week by opening its doors for free and hosting a pile of interesting events. This exquisite, boutique museum, dedicated to ceramics, is a must-see for locals and visitors alike.

The Gardiner is also presenting the exhibition, Ron Thom and the Allied Arts. Ron Thom was one of Canada's greatest architects. WMSC members might remember a very fine lecture on his work a few years ago, and a tour of Massey College, which he designed with strong Arts and Crafts influences. The Gardiner's exhibition is open now and runs til April 27.

~ The ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) has announced Around 1914: Design in a New Age. From March 29 of this year until March 21, 2015, this original exhibit showcases the ROM’s decorative arts collections including works by Jensen, Tiffany, Lloyd Wright, Bugatti, Knox, Dresser and Hoffmann. There will also be a Decorative Arts Symposium, April 10 and 11, which looks unmissable. Check it out here.

~ Just in case you're in the area of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Motawi Tileworks is conducting a tour on March 29. They'll visit tile installations in and around Ann Arbor including the home of owner Nawal Motawi. Here's a sample of what you'll see!

~ Thank you to WMSC member and tweeter @LeraKotsyuba for pointing us to this exciting bit of news of recently discovered Pre-Raphaelite-inspired artwork.

~ The Guardian reported that in May, Sotheby's will be auctioning Rossetti's painting Pandora, 1871 (for which Jane Morris was the model). It is predicted that it will break previous sales records for a Rossetti work.

~ Our friends at the William Morris Society (U.S.) tweeted that Arts and Crafts Tours is leading a three-day architectural exploration of Chicago. This tour was requested by The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms for their members. WMSC members will remember our own fantastic tour there in 2008. There are some elements that we didn't cover and, anyway, it's never too early to revisit some of these remarkable sites.

~ This week, in celebration of World Book Day (and in preparation for this year's William Morris birthday cake) we tweeted this picture of our Art of the Book cake for our symposium a few years ago. Watch this space for a retrospective of past cakes and a reportage of this year's cake!