Housed in an extraordinary late Victorian mansion built by William Waldorf Aster, on the Embankment, Two Temple Place is a museum that has only recently been open to the public for exhibitions. From October, and sadly until this weekend, the house played host to a free exhibition on the artist William Morris. The inaugural exhibition, showcasing tapestries, pattern tests and printed tiles, describes how Morris was inspired by poetry, myth and folklore. From Chaucer to Arthurian legends and Greek myths, Morris and many of the Pre-Raphaelites- Edward Burne-Jones included- featured these tales and poems in their work. For myself, it was not so much the tapestries in the exhibition that were interesting, but much more, the hand painted and block printed patterns; some showing the designs in progress with panels half sketched/ half coloured. The building itself provided an extremely apt setting, and as much a reason to see the architecture as to see the exhibition. This seemed readily accepted and utilised by the museum, who provide doubled-sided A4 sheets of information on the architect and designers. Some features to look out for: the beautiful mosaic floor in the main hall made of jasper and onyx, the stain-glass windows by Clayton and Bell, the wood carvings of the Three Musketeers on the handrail of the stairs, and also the stunning glass roof light at the top of the hall.
Images: My Own
Some examples of his beautiful fabrics:
