William Morris was the father of the Arts and Crafts Movement. He was against societies’ enthusiasm for the industrial revolutions. Much like hipsters today he appreciated hand made items. He brought back the interest in finely made items. He brought back the interest in finely made books and started the trend of the printing press houses. He opened his own press called the Kelmscott Press where he churned out intricate book designs made out of intricate designs, hand carved woodblocks, and handmade paper. (Below you may find some examples of the types of work put out by the Kemlscott Press.) Morris inspired many artists to go back to their artistic roots and to participate in the making of sturdy, well made products.
Much like hipsters now a days, Morris was against a throw away society. Morris attempted to make everyday items such as books or tapestry’s works of art. He brought back value on craftsmanship in a society that was focused on moving towards industrialization. We as a society should take notice on this way of thinking and should start to value craftsmanship skills. We have become a full on throwaway society where our mentality is, “I’ll just buy another one.” Where is the value in that? We should put in the work to make our possession feel valuable. To see something as simple as a book and see all the work that was put into making it. Lets all take some time and really think about how much we value our things; or is the throwaway society mentality so ingrained into our brain that we cannot possibly conceive something as simple as a book cover to be considered a piece of art that takes valuable skills to master?
Daisy's Look into Graphic Art History 