I was very excited to see so much of this inspirational man's life and work in one place.
The house in Walthamstow was one of the houses William Morris grew up, but wasn't the beautiful one he designed.
I also wanted to visit his house at Kelmscott, but it was closed over winter.
The woodblocks were of particular interest, because I enjoy printing myself.
I discovered that the finest parts of the blocks were metal to ensure the longevity of the blocks.
I was interested in the way the blocks were used:
- the paint was applied to a blanket in the areas that the block needed the colour;
- the very large (almost 1m sq) woodblock was supported to prevent strain, and it was lowered onto the blanked to pick up the paint;
- then the block was lowered onto a table with the paper/fabric with great care to get the block in the exact position;
- the paper/fabric was then moved along to the next bit, and the whole process was repeated.
I was surprised that the paint was relatively thickly applied compared to my own printmaking where a thinner layer of ink prevents blotching.
So many beautiful designs!
Of course I had to buy a catalogue.
Research... of course!