Wightwick Manor: Pre-Raphaelites and Morris & Co

Built in 1887, Wightwick Manor is a shrine to the Arts and Crafts movement. When Theodore Mander commissioned the building of a new manor on Wightwick Bank in the Old English style in 1887 he started the Mander family's love for Victorian art & design which would unfold over a century of collecting and preservation. However, his untimely death in 1900 left the care and development of the new home (Wightwick Manor) to his son, Geoffrey. His story is one of art and design, industry and politics, told through the house he saved and lived in. 

With its barley twist brick chimneys and oak framed white-washed walls, the design of house looked to be something from five centuries earlier, rather than just five decades old. The garden, designed by Thomas Mawson, retains its clear lines of yew hedges, bold planting and expansive lawns. The house's Aesthetic Movement interiors are heavy with designs by William Morris and his associates. Morris & Co did not formally design for Wightwick Manor but all the wallpapers, fabric wall coverings and soft furnishings were bought through the Morris & Co shop or catalogue.

Over time a unique collection of Pre-Raphaelite art developed, with some major pieces supplied by the National Trust, and small works and sketches either purchased or given to the National Trust. The artworks are shown in a domestic setting. Their collection now boasts over 70 works by D.G Rossetti; 50 by Edward Burne-Jones; 23 by Evelyn De Morgan and 20 by Millais. They also have works by the often overlooked Pre-Raphaelites; Lizzy Siddal, Lucy Maddox Brown and Simeon Solomon. 

Simeon Solomon was Jewish, gay and suffered from mental health issues. Through his friendship with Rossetti he became one of the group of artists, poets and designers involved in the second wave of Pre- Raphaelitism. He was hailed a genius within his lifetime, exhibiting his art in all the major London galleries, designing stained glass for Morris & Co. and illustrating beautiful books, all to much critical acclaim. Initially he gained much critical and commercial acclaim for his depictions of Old Testament scenes with his accurate portrayal of costume and location, using his own Jewish heritage and community as inspiration, while being sold to a predominately Christian market. Yet he is largely forgotten today and died in obscurity, poverty and alcoholism in the workhouse. The Honeysuckle Room at Wightwick Manor contains 10 works of art by Solomon; most from the later period when he is repeatedly exploring the themes of Night and Death.

In the purpose-built Malthouse Gallery, a new exhibition at Wightwick Manor displays drawings and paintings by the pioneering female artist, Evelyn De Morgan (1855-1919), and the creations of her husband, the preeminent ceramic designer, William De Morgan (1839-1917). The sumptuous interiors and original De Morgan tiled fireplaces at Wightwick Manor provide the perfect setting for the De Morgan Collection to be housed in a purpose-built gallery in the grounds. The current exhibition Look Beneath the Lustre invites visitors to discover how the wonderful De Morgan artworks were created by looking beneath the lustre of the De Morgan’s artwork. More preparatory drawings and sketches by William and Evelyn De Morgan are on display than ever before, inviting the visitor to consider the people and preparation behind the paintings and the plates. Look Beneath the Lustre is in partnership with the De Morgan Foundation with items on loan from the V&A and National Portrait Gallery.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loreena McKennitt - The Mystic's Dream.