The Arts and Crafts Movement: a short introduction

Was the English Arts and Crafts Movement the most important art movement the country has produced? This talk will introduce the ideas and ideals behind what brought together a highly individual group of men and women to produce architecture, craft and art at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century.

'When we were Little Lads': William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones, the Friendship of a Lifetime

William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones came from very different backgrounds but their shared love of medieval literature and art bound them together. For over 40 years they weathered personal storms, tragedies and political disagreements to create beautiful art and craft: book design, stained glass and other decorative projects. This talk charts the peaks and troughs of their long friendship.

The Arts and Crafts Movement in England's Churches

Between about 1890 and 1930, Arts and Crafts designers built and contributed to hundreds of churches across England. Some are famous schemes including the church building and all its interior fittings, such as Brockhampton in Herefordshire; Holy Trinity, Sloane Square, London; St. Andrew’s, Roker.  Discover how designers like William Morris changed the course of church furnishing in England, and how the next generation of Arts and Crafts designers revolutionised church design. 

Arts and Crafts stained glass in England's Churches

By far the most common type of Arts and Crafts work in England’s churches is stained glass. Starting with one of the most ground-breaking schemes, Gloucester Cathedral’s Lady Chapel by Christopher Whall, 1899, we’ll explore the works of designers such as Henry Payne and Paul Woodroffe, and look, too, at some of the female artists of the Movement who excelled in glass, such as Theodora Salusbury, Caroline Townshend, the Rope cousins and Veronica Whall.

Women designers of the Arts and Crafts Movement

The Arts and Crafts Movement was one of the first art movements to recognise the artistry and skills of women artists and designers – but they are still today not as well-known as their male counterparts. This talk seeks to put right this situation, explore embroidery, ceramics, metalwork, stained glass, bookbinding and other ‘suitable’ crafts, and look at the perceptions of female designers and makers at the time they were producing in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 

The Arts and Crafts Movement in the Cotswolds

The Cotswolds became one of the most vibrant rural centres of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Several groups of designers and makers settled in the region, from Ernest Gimson and the Barnsley brothers, to C R Ashbee and his Guild of Handicraft, and designers and artists from the Birmingham School of Art. This talk explores their work, and their impact on the architecture, art and life of the area, looking at all areas of craft from country houses to churches to utopian communities. 

'Memorials of these Dark Days': Arts and Crafts War Memorials

There was a national need for memorials in the wake of the First World War, and the designers of the Arts and Crafts Movement rose to the challenge, creating crosses, memorials, halls and much more. This talk explores the ways that Arts and Crafts designers chose to interpret their commissions to commemorate the war, and looks at a rich array of memorials from church and town alike, crosses to stained glass to water troughs – and at the attendant local politics in erecting them! 

Romancing the King

What did the stories of King Arthur and his knights and ladies mean to Victorian and Edwardian artists and their audiences? From tragic romance to political statement, we’ll be examining how Arthurian legend was portrayed in the arts from William Dyce’s virtuous paintings to Aubrey Beardsley’s darker take on the legends and beyond to revivals of Celtic legend in the Edwardian period.

Wee Folk, Good Folk

Discover the great age of fairy and folklore painting and illustration in Victorian and Edwardian art. The Victorians and Edwardians loved fairy tales and were rediscovering the folklore of the places around them. Join Kirsty Hartsiotis in exploring the work of artists from Richard Dadd's dark fantasies to Walter Crane's bright toy books and into the riches of the Edwardian age.

'A Fine Old Christmas': Christmas art in the 19th and early 20th centuries

What did Christmas look like in 19th and early 20th century art? This new talk explores the art of Christmas in European art and design from the romanticism of the late Pre-Raphaelites, the nostalgia of commercial designs for cards and Christmas books, and an increasing realism in the newer art styles at the turn of the century - and we'll look, too, at the cards and greetings artists and designers sent each other.

A Beautiful Book! William Morris's Kelmscott Chaucer

Discover the fascinating and complex story behind William Morris’ last masterpiece, the Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, and his collaboration with his great friends the printer Emery Walker, who inspired him to start the Kelmscott Press, and helped him set it up, and artist Edward Burne-Jones, who provided the 87 illustrations in the book. This lavishly illustrated talk takes you through both the story of the book and the press, and also explores the personalities who came together to work on it.

Emery Walker and the Private Press Movement 

Printer Sir Emery Walker was a pivotal figure in the English, American, and continental European Private Press Movement from the 1880s until his death in 1933. He inspired William Morris to start his Kelmscott Press, but had his own adventures into printing in the 20th century, and despite setbacks caused by arguments and war, continued printing into his 80s. This talk charts his journey from 13-year-old draper’s assistant to one of the most respected people in the printing world. 

The Golden Age of British Book Illustration

Discover how the art of book illustration flourished in Britain from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. From the first forays of the Pre-Raphaelites into illustration, Walter Crane's toy books, Edward Burne-Jones at William Morris's Kelmscott Press, as well as Aubrey Beardsley, Arthur Rackham, Edmund Dulac and many more – including people like Charles March Gere and Maxwell Armfield who worked here in the Cotswolds. 

The Arts and Crafts Movement in the Cotswolds

The Cotswolds became one of the most vibrant rural centres of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Several groups of designers and makers settled in the region, from Ernest Gimson and the Barnsley brothers, to C R Ashbee and his Guild of Handicraft, and designers and artists from the Birmingham School of Art. This talk explores their work, and their impact on the architecture, art and life of the area, looking at all areas of craft from country houses to churches to utopian communities. 

William Morris in the Cotswolds

Designer, poet and socialist William Morris took a lot of inspiration from the Cotswolds and the surrounding area. He was first introduced to the west as a schoolboy at Marlborough, escaping into the Downs whenever he could. Then, in the 1870s, he took on Kelmscott Manor near Lechlade, which became his 'Old House on the Thames'. This talk will explore Morris's relationship with the region, and how it inspired his poetry, design and his ideas of ideal living.

Arts and Crafts in Cotswold Churches

An exploration of the unusually high incidence of Arts and Crafts churches and fittings in the Cotswolds, thanks in part to the many designers who settled here.  This talk will cover churches, church fittings, stained glass and memorials in the Cotswolds and the surrounding area. We’ll examine how Arts and Crafts designers revolutionised church design and adapted to the needs of their patrons. 

Arts and Crafts Stained Glass in Cotswold Churches

The Arts and Crafts Movement was one of the most important design movements in British history. The Cotswolds has many links with the movement, with many designers settling and working in the area. One place you can see lots of Arts and Crafts work is in our churches, and by far the most common item you’ll see is beautiful, glowing stained glass.

An Arts and Crafts Christmas

Gloucestershire was at the heart of the Arts and Crafts Movement, with many artists, architects and craftspeople settling in the area for life. Discover how they spent their Christmases, the carols they sang, and the art they produced as personal gifts for each other - as well as exploring Christmas-based art we can all visit in our churches.

Cotswold Utopias

Kirsty will explore some of the communities in Gloucestershire who took up the challenge of creating craft and living well locally. These include Campden’s own Guild of Handicraft, as well as others such as the Whiteway Community near Stroud, Prinknash Abbey, The Taena community in the Forest of Dean and Rodmarton Manor.

Women in the Arts and Crafts Movement in the Cotswolds 

The Arts and Crafts Movement was one of the first art movements to recognise the artistry and skills of women artists and designers. In the Cotswolds, women designers worked as hard as men – but they are still today not as well-known as their male counterparts.  This talk seeks to put right this situation, exploring embroidery, ceramics, metalwork, stained glass, bookbinding and other ‘suitable’ (or not) crafts, and look at the perceptions of female designers and makers at the time they were producing. 

'Art interwoven with life': Ernest Gimson, a true Arts and Crafts Man

Ernest Gimson was described by Nikolaus Pevsner as ‘the greatest of the English artist-craftsmen’, and yet he is not as well-known as many other Arts and Crafts designers. Definitely not a self-publicist, he lived and worked for most of his adult life in rural Gloucestershire. This talk explores Gimson’s creative process as a designer of buildings, furniture, textiles, metalwork and plaster. It looks, too, at his relationships with other members of the movement. 

From Birmingham to Byzantium: Stories of Ernest and Sidney Barnsley

2026 marks the centenary of the death two of the Cotswolds’ greatest Arts and Crafts architects, the brothers Ernest and Sidney Barnsley. They moved, with their friend Ernest Gimson, to Gloucestershire in the 1890s, and all three stayed here for all their lives. This talk follows their life stories, through travel abroad to their life in the Cotswolds, and also the work they did in Gloucestershire. 

The English Arts and Crafts Movement at its Best?

Ernest Gimson and Sidney and his brother Ernest Barnsley moved to Gloucestershire in the early 1890s to live the simple life in the country and create craft.  They set up craft workshops to make furniture and metalwork in their adopted village of Sapperton, and drew a group of like-minded friends and followers to the area. This talk explores their creative process, and looks into their ideals and what drew their interest in the Cotswolds to inspire their work.

 Arts and Crafts Movement First World War Memorials in the Cotswolds

The Cotswolds have an unusual number of Arts and Crafts memorials, due, in part, to the architects and designers who had settled in the county from the 1890s onwards. This talk will feature designers such as Ernest Gimson, Henry Payne, Edwin Lutyens and F. L. Griggs with a rich array of memorials from church and town alike, crosses to stained glass to water troughs – and all the attendant local politics in erecting them!

Delighting in the Countryside: Gloucestershire's Arts and Crafts Movement artists

Inspired by the craftspeople of the Arts and Crafts Movement already in the area and by the beauty of the Cotswolds, many artists came to settle in the Gloucestershire countryside in the early 20th century; among them, Charles March Gere and Margaret Gere, Henry and Edith Payne, F L Griggs and William Rothenstein. Kirsty explores their interpretations of the natural landscape and the ideals that led the artists to settle here.

Exquisite Embroideries to Glittering Glass

Women’s work has always been in our churches, but never more so than in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. We’ll discover work by women such as Theo Moorman, Veronica Whall, Mary Lowndes, Nora Yoxall and Nan Reid, among many unsung women whose work enriches our churches right up the present day.

Flowers, plants and nature in the Arts and Crafts Movement in the Cotswolds

The Arts and Crafts Movement is well-known for its use of the natural world for inspiration, from William Morris onwards. Here in the Cotswolds designers lived close to nature, getting to know intimately the places they chose for their homes, and drawing on the natural world around them for inspiration across all media. From glittering stained glass to soft plaster, flowers appear, sometimes decorative, sometimes symbolic. We’ll look, too, at the gardens they designed. 

The Arts and Crafts Movement in Birmingham & Worcestershire

The Birmingham School of Art kickstarted an Arts and Crafts revolution in the city that spread to the surrounding area. Craftspeople like stained glass artist Henry Payne, embroiderer Mary Newill, jewellers Arthur and Georgie Gaskin, and architects like Arthur S Dixon all trained at the School and applied the Arts and Crafts methods to their own practice in the area and further afield. Explore the story of art and architecture in Birmingham, Bromsgrove and beyond..

The Arts and Crafts Movement in Worcestershire's Churches

Why does Worcestershire have so much material from the Arts and Crafts Movement in its churches? Close to Birmingham and many Arts and Crafts makers there, there were also designers and makers based in the county such as the influential Bromsgrove Guild - but that's definitely not all! We'll explore a number of churches in the county and look at stained glass, wood carving, metalwork and more in older churches.