The Arts and Crafts movement in Manchester: An Untold Story with Barry Clark
Join Barry Clark as he explores Manchester’s rich contribution to the Arts and Crafts movement.
William Morris was a frequent visitor to Manchester, and the only Morris & Co. shop outside London was located there. His now-famous dictum—Do not have anything in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful—was first heard in Manchester. The first of his explicitly socialist lectures, Art, Wealth and Riches, was delivered at the Manchester Royal Institution, now the City Art Gallery—but it was not well received! John Ruskin was also a frequent lecturer in the city, and Morris’s fellow art worker, Walter Crane, was Head of Design at the Manchester Municipal School of Art from 1893 to 1896.
However, in this talk, Barry will also share recent research on lesser-known Manchester-based Arts and Crafts architects, artists, and artisans who, in 1896, formed the Northern Art Workers’ Guild in the city. The Guild’s members will be identified, with numerous illustrations of their work, alongside the exhibitions that brought them to public notice. Firms similar to F. R. Leach & Sons and artisans akin to David Parr will feature. It is a story of a northern craft revival that was neither rural nor London-focused but an essential component of the Arts and Crafts movement, located in the heart of industrial England. The Guild was unusual for its time in that women were active and equal members, holding office, giving talks, and exhibiting work at the Guild’s open exhibitions.
Whilst the Guild was relatively short-lived (1896–1912), its members and ideals played a key part in later initiatives. In 1917, the highly active Manchester branch of the Design & Industries Association was established, promoting the best in everyday machine-made products. In 1920, the Red Rose Guild of Artworkers held the first of its annual craft exhibitions, thus continuing the promotion of hand-made objects.
Barry’s beautifully illustrated talk, featuring many original documents, will bring all this to life as he reveals the untold story of Manchester’s extensive involvement in the Arts and Crafts movement.
More about Barry:
Barry Clark is an experienced speaker and a retired Manchester Metropolitan University lecturer with a lifelong interest in the Arts and Crafts movement. He is co-author, with Stephanie Boydell and Richard Fletcher, of the recently published The Northern Art Workers’ Guild and the Arts and Crafts Movement in Manchester. Barry is a craft bookbinder, chair of the Society of Bookbinders’ North West and North Wales region, and tutors bookbinding workshops at Manchester’s Portico Library.
