The name William Morris is synonymous with floral designs and Victorian chintzy-charm with many today. But his arabesques are charges with the Socialist ideals he campaigned for. In changing the face of design, he advocated change in the workplace and inspired others to do the same.

In this talk, Sarah Hardy, Director of the De Morgan Museum and Trustee of the William Morris Society, will give an overview of Morris’s life, from his time as a student at Oxford, to his travels in Iceland and to the founding of the Kelmscott Press to print his own books. Beautiful design will be at the centre of this lunchtime lecture, as it was at the centre of Morris’s practice.