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William Morris and the Art of Printing

Illustration: Kelmscott Press logo, 1890s.

At the start of last decade of the nineteenth century, when William Morris was fast approaching sixty, he decided to pursue yet another decorative interest in a career that was already, by many people's standards, full. As was typical of his character, when most individuals his age would rather slide into an easy retirement of pruning rose bushes and sitting in the autumn sun, Morris decided to rediscover for himself, the art of hand printing.

In many respects, Morris efforts within the discipline of printing could well be seen as the 'art' of printing rather than the practical application and necessity of printing. In explanation, he stated himself, a year before he died, that:

'I began printing books with the hope of producing some which would have a definite claim to beauty...'

Illustration: A page of the Chaucer edition, prduced by the Kelmscott Press, 1890s.

The books produced by the Kelmscott Press, of which there were fifty-three titles over a period from 1891 to 1898, were indeed spectacularly beautiful in concept, style, and above all decoration. Morris went out of his way to produce printed books that were to be treasured as beautiful art objects. However, he was also keen for the books not to be subsumed entirely in style and added that although beauty within the Kelmscott Press was a necessity it was also to be a requisite that all titles:

'...should be easy to read and should not dazzle the eye, or trouble the intellect of the reader by eccentricity of form in the letters.'

In many respects, this seemed to work, as the decoration, which is highly stylised, does tend to be limited to illustrative plates and a certain amount of side bar decoration. The type itself, although heavily stylised, is not unreadable and rarely played with, producing probably the best of both worlds, beautiful decoration and uncluttered text.

Illustration: First page of The Nature of Gothic by John Ruskin, produced by the Kelmscott Press, 1890s.

There is something decidedly romantic about Morris use of the Kelmscott Press. It was definitely a labour of love and although continuing for a couple of years after Morris death in 1896, the project was very much associated with his own character and certainly with his creative drive. The titles themselves tended towards the romantic and particularly the medieval romantic, with many dealing with poetry and medieval tales. Morris mentioned the decided medieval influence when talking about the Kelmscott project, stating that:

'I have always been a great admirer of the calligraphy of the Middle Ages, and of the earlier printing which took its place.'

Although the printing press was invented and developed at the end of the European medieval period, much of it was still heavily influenced by the calligraphy and illustration that had been such an important part of the European medieval culture and in this respect Morris picked up and used this form of early printing in both style and technique. Books were an entirety in themselves, from decoration, to text to content, to covering. We tend to think today of books as being information sources only, and now with the internet, even more so. To some extent, the same was true in the nineteenth century where many books were mass-produced on cheap paper with inferior printing techniques. Part of Morris reason for setting up the Kelmscott Press in the first place was his belief in the dire nature of the contemporary book market. What better way, he presumed than for the decorative arts to be involved in book production.

'It was only natural that I, a decorator by profession, should attempt to ornament my books suitably.'

Illustration: Illustration of Kelmscott Manor from 'News from Nowhere' by William Morris, produced by the Kelmscott Press, 1890s.

Morris always wanted the books produced by the Kelmscott Press to be an event in themselves, a wholly artistic creation. Enormous amounts of time and energy were spent on every detail of production from the sourcing of the correct paper quality to appropriate inks and type. In many ways, Morris thoroughly enjoyed himself, as much as when he experimented earlier in his career with dyeing techniques for textiles, or with jacquard weaving, or tapestry and embroidery production. Morris thrived on projects, particularly when there was little available evidence for procedure, which gave scope to lots of experimentation, failure and more experimentation.

It is highly conceivable that if he had not died in 1896 at the relatively early age of sixty-two, more projects would have developed. To read a biography of Morris is to be astounded and then exhausted by the sheer dynamism of the man. Just one of Morris projects would have quite happily filled the life of an individual, that he decided to become involved in so many and at such a fundamental level is testament to his character. That he ended his life with one of his greatest projects and left a body of work that is still both admired and influential is perhaps more than most of us could possibly hope for.

Illustration: 'The Glittering Plain' by William Morris, printed by the Kelmscott Press, 1890s.