A Decorative Art: History of Wallpapers

Wallpaper is often regarded as the Cinderella of the Decorative Arts – the most ephemeral & least precious of the decorations produced for the home. Yet, the history of wallpaper is a long & fascinating subject that dates back to the 16th century & encompasses a huge range of beautiful patterns created both by anonymous hands & by some of the best-known designers of the 19th & 20th centuries. This lecture explores the history & development of this product from earliest times up to the present day. It includes a discussion of the changing ways in which wallpaper was made & a survey of designs from the first black & white patterns, the creation of elegant flock hangings, the fashion for Chinese hand-painted papers, the introduction of machine-printing, the designs of Morris & the Arts & Crafts Movement, & the taste for Modernist & Contemporary designs in the 20th century. It also includes a discussion of the ways that wallpapers were used within grand & more ordinary homes & hopes to justify the claim that they were indeed a truly Decorative Art.

THE ARTS SOCIETY ACCREDITED LECTURER

Ms Joanna Banham

Jo Banham is a freelance curator, lecturer and writer. From 2006-2016 she was Head of Adult Learning at the Victoria & Albert Museum, and before that Head of Learning and Access at the National Portrait Gallery, and Head of Public Programmes at Tate Britain. She has also been Curator of Leighton House and Assistant Keeper at the Whitworth Art Gallery. She has published on many aspects of Victorian and early 20th century decoration and interiors. She is currently curating an exhibition on William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement for the Juan March Fundacion in Madrid and the Museu Nacional d’Art Catalunya in Barcelona. She is also Director of the Victorian Society Summer School.