me! MANDY me!: November 2012

Arts and Crafts

Arts and Crafts was an international design movement that flourished between 1860 and 1910, continuing its influence until the 1930s. The name "Arts and Crafts" came from the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society, which was set up in 1887, to show various designers' work in a range of materials. The founding members were Walter Crane, William Morris, and Charles Robert Ashbee.
The main developer of the Arts and Crafts style was William Morris, a writer. He was influenced by the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, an earlier English art group formed in 1848 to restore art to the ‘‘purity’’of Italian art before Raphael.

Morris was an English poet, artist and socialist reformer, who rejected to opulence on the Victorian era and urged a return to medieval traditions of design, craftsmanship, and community. He was inspired by the writings of John Ruskin and Augustus Pugin who championed the return of Gothic architecture, which was the last true architectural movement in their opinion.

Morris's art work

A very decorative art piece, with almost no blank space left undecorated. The Strawberry Thieves.

the Red House

The Red House, situated in the heart of Bexley, designed for William Morris by his architect friend Philip Webb in 1859.

the interior

The interior of the house was decorated with murals painted by Burne Jones and Rossetti. Much of the furniture and some of the glass and metalwork were designed by Philip Webb. Morris also contributed, and installed the big white settle which he designed for Red Lion Square. Morris and his wife Janey worked together on wall hangings and embroidery in medieval themes and friends were frequently called upon to assist the decoration of walls and ceilings.

The dramatic spatial effect of the oak staircase, looking up to the painted pattern of the staircase turret ceiling .

The living room, showing Webb's dresser and the exposed brick fireplace set between windows overlooking the orchard.

ART NOUVEAU

Art Nouveau an international movement and style of art, architecture and applied art that peaked in popularity at the turn of the 20th century (1890–1905) . 'Art Nouveau' is a French term, which means 'new art'. It is characterized by organic, especially floral and other plant-inspired motifs, as well as highly-stylized, flowing curvilinear forms.

Art Nouveau is an approach to design according to which artists should work on everything from, for example architecture; interior design; jewelry, furniture, textiles, to household silver and other utensils, making art part of everyday life.

Antoni Gaudi 1852 - 1926

Architect and designer, Antoni Gaudi is the most internationally prestigious figure in spanish architecture and also in the Art Nouveau movement.

Casa dels ossos

Gaudi's concept; no straight lines! The flow of the exterior of a building cannot preperly be explained with the use of straight lines, but rather organic and nonlinear patterns. These concept were applied in this masterpiece, Casa dels ossos. There are no edges or corners in this building. Even the walls are rounded by giving essence of smooth skin of a sea serpent. There are a numbers of small, curved balconies on the facade. As if they are sticking on to the walls like bird nests on a cliff.

Sagrada Familia

Gaudi's most famous art piece, the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain. It was a church designed by Gaudi in 1882. He is usually considered the great master of Catalan Modernism, but his works go beyond any one style or classification. Gaudi did his imaginative works that he found his inspirations from the nature and applied it into the Sagrada Familia.

interior of the Sagrada Familia

Gaudí studied organic and anarchic geometric forms of nature thoroughly, searching for a way to give expression to these forms in architecture. Instead of using plain columns in supporting the ceiling of the church, he used columns that look like tree trunk with the branches stretching out from the main trunk to support the roof.

Gaudi found that the traditional way to build were too complicated and difficult therefore he always ought to try some new techniques, modern ways in building his art work. And so, among other resources, he had railway tracks laid with small wagons to transport the materials, brought in cranes to lift the weights and had the workshops located on the site to make the work easier. A century after his death, people are still trying to complete this building, using Gaudi's original idea and the same way Gaudi did, keep trying out new technologies and materials. Old wagons were replaced by powerful cranes, machines and materials are improved to ensure this piece of art work last in good quality.

Although it is still incomplete, the church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and in November 2010 was consecrated and proclaimed a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XVI.

Source of information:

1. Notes from Foundation lecturer.

2. Astro channel's encyclopedia tv show.

3. http://www.sagradafamilia.cat

4. Wikipedia