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Taking Morris's Name in Vain:

Spotting Fake William Morris Exhibition Prints

Posters claiming to be reproductions of a William Morris Cotton Exhibition

'He can call me Flower if he wants to,' ~ Thumper, in the Disney film, Bambi

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About Those William Morris Exhibition Posters

Are the prints above William Morris? Spoiler: No they are not, but let me tell you why not.

I am seeing this sort of art work everywhere and I occasionally get requests for it. It isn't Morris; it is capitalizing on William Morris's name to sell AI-generated Disney-ish sentimentality, a genre that is arguably escapist, but considering the state of the world, I can't begrudge a little escapism. But it isn't Morris.

I am carrying on about this because I am occasionally asked for tiles based on these. And I did make a small kitchen backsplash for a very nice lady who was very excited to have it. But in the end, she was disappointed; I used Morris natural colors which are not as vibrant as she would have wished and I regret doing it.

Some Things to Consider

Anyone can print up an official looking poster such as those shown above. Major exhibitions such as those held at William Morris Gallery, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Victoria and Albert Museum do occasionally offer prints with reproductions of Morris's designs. These are never sold on Amazon or Etsy. They're purpose to help fund the museum's work and they cost more than $12.95 with free shipping.

William Morris had Philip Webb and sometimes Burne-Jones draw bodies, human and animal, in his work. The Forest Animals, and Brother Rabbit were actually drawn by Philip Webb, with Morris designing the backgrounds.

This painting of La Belle Iseult, with Jane Morris as a model, was actually Morris's work and is believed to be the only oil painting that he completed. He wrote on the canvas, "I cannot paint you but I love you." You can see it at the Tate.

La Belle Iseult, William Morris

Morris's values were reactionary to the growth of impersonal and dehumanizing mechanization in Victorian England, embracing the values of the medieval guilds and fine craftsmanship. We can safely conclude that artificially generated design would not have been an original Morris, Marshall, and Faulkner offering.

Accept No Substitutes

Behold an actual Morris Textile Exhibition Poster. You can see this is where the design for the takes was taken.

Morris Centenerary Exhibition Poster

A Short List of Actual Morris Exhibitions

Cleveland Art Museum

William Morris Gallery

Emery Walker's William Morris Mementos

Victoria and Albert Museum

Textile Arts Council - Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

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Also See

Some William and May Morris Tiles from Textiles

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