Trellis

Jeffrey & Co.|William Morris|Morris & Company|Philip Webb

1864 · Block-printed in distemper colors · Drawings and Prints

This was William Morris's first wallpaper design, conceived in 1862 shortly after the formation of Morris, Marshall, Faulkner, and Company. The pattern communicates an essential naturalism, weaving a vine-like rose bush through a trellis. The imagery was inspired by a trellised rose in Morris's garden at the Red House, Bexleyheath, Kent. The architect Phillip Webb, who designed the latter house, also collaborated here by designing the blue jays. Delays in production meant that the pattern became the third that the company offered for sale, in 1864. Here, a gray trellis, pink roses and blue birds are printed against a cream ground. The company also offered variation with blue or gray backgrounds from 1868.

Artist

Jeffrey & Co.|William Morris|Morris & Company|Philip Webb

Date

1864

Medium

Block-printed in distemper colors

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Purchase, Edward C. Moore Jr. Gift, 1923