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the house beautiful: Oscar Wilde and the Aesthetic InteriorThe title of the exhibition takes its name from a lecture given by Oscar Wilde in America. It was during this time that Wilde confirmed his position as the self-appointed spokesman of the Aesthetic movement. To celebrate the centenary of his death, the Geffrye museum has mounted an exhibition charting his influence on interiors, particularly those of the middle class, during the latter part of the 19th Century.
The origins of the Aesthetic movement lay in reaction to the heaviness and clutter of High Victorian taste and a revulsion against mass-produced goods. The movement promoted the notion of ‘art for art’s sake’ and drew heavily on Middle-Eastern and Oriental, especially Japanese, decorative traditions. The enthusiasm for the simplicity of oriental design was expressed by the craze for blue-and-white china in the 1870s and 1880s, and in the geometric furniture designs of E.W. Godwin. The Aesthetic interior was eclectic, drawing on influences of other cultures and periods. Queen Anne architecture, Moorish tiles, and Renaissance drapes all had their advocates. The exhibition illustrates that in the creation of the ‘house beautiful’ the dominant feature in reception rooms was typically an elaborate fireplace and overmantel, which provided an opportunity for the display of the prized collections of china. Favoured colours were olive green, peacock blue and gold. Peacock feathers, sunflowers and lilies were all popular motifs used in wallpapers, textiles, terracotta panels, tiles and stained glass.
The interior of Wilde’s own home in Tite Street showed considerable restraint. Working with Godwin, high-gloss white paint was pre-dominantly used. However the library, where Wilde did most of his writing, was Moorish in style, in dark blue and gold. The ideas of the Aesthetes were far-reaching, due to Wilde’s publicity through the popular press and the wealth of illustrated furnishing manuals available to the middle classes. Aesthetic artefacts were readily available through shops such as Liberty and Heals. Amongst the most influential suppliers of furniture and furnishings were Morris and Co, whose wallpapers and textiles were especially favoured in artistic interiors.
Wilde’s own ‘house beautiful’ was short-lived, for he was ruined by his affair with Lord Alfred Douglas, which left him bankrupt, imprisoned and ultimately exiled. He never lost his wit, however, and on his deathbed commented ‘My wallpaper and I are fighting a dual to the death. One or other of us has to go.’
Location: Geffrye Museum, Kingsland Road, Prop hire companies that hire Moorish & Oriental furniture include: For lighting used in Aesthetic interiors contact: |
