New York: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc., 1978. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Hardcover. The format is approximately 7.5 inches by 9.75 inches. 232 pages. Illustrations. Chronology. Bibliography. Index. The dust jacket is decorative and price clipped. The front and rear boards weak and reglued where webbing was exposed. William Morris (1834–1896) was the towering figure in late 19th-century design and the main influence on the Arts and Crafts movement. The aesthetic and social vision of the movement grew out of ideas that he developed in the 1850s with the Birmingham Set – a group of students at the University of Oxford including Edward Burne-Jones, who combined a love of Romantic literature with a commitment to social reform. The medievalism of Malory's Morte d'Arthur set the standard for their early style. William Morris's Red House in Bexleyheath, designed by Philip Webb and completed in 1860; one of the most significant buildings of the Arts and Crafts movement. Morris began experimenting with various crafts and designing furniture and interiors. He was personally involved in manufacture as well as design, which was the hallmark of the Arts and Crafts movement. Morris argued that "without dignified, creative human occupation people became disconnected from life". In 1861, Morris began making furniture and decorative objects commercially, modeling his designs on medieval styles and using bold forms and strong colors. His patterns were based on flora and fauna, and his products were inspired by the vernacular or domestic traditions of the British countryside. Morris strove to unite all the arts within the decoration of the home, emphasizing nature and simplicity of form. More