Ornamentation
- Karené
- May 26
- 5 min read
Hello and happy Spring time!
What amazing weather we've had this year! As a bit of a sun-powered being, I've been super grateful for it. I'm feeling much more alive and energised.
My photography has not allowed me much pattern-creating time, but I have had a chance to dip my toes into some ceramic pattern. I even created my own tiles for my kitchen, which I love and brings me (and my family) so much joy. I really think that leaving my mark on the walls somehow has helped me claim the space as my own.
And so I have been mulling over why we decorate things. At the beginning of my workshops I like to remind everyone that our ancestors decorated things - their homes, their clothes or their bodies, but nowadays, we are often too busy or we are lead to believe it is a futile and unnecessary activity.
In the past there was so much ornamentation - from tiles and paving, to stone carvings on buildings - I love discovering ornamentation in public areas!
In the 1800's decorating buildings and metalwork like lampposts and gates, seemed to be the norm. I wonder whether public ornamentation possibly grow out of creativity in private areas - embroidery, knitting, weaving, ceramics, carpentry etc. ? It seems as if everything was carefully considered.
So when did ornamentation become a frivolous thing? Was it post war, when people had to rebuild and survive in a broken world, that there was no time to create in a less "useful" way? Or was it as Anna Philips suggests, at the peak of the Bauhaus era that emphasised "function over form" and people were encouraged to simplify to strip everything down to only the essential? (SHORT LINK) Or was it purely an economical thing? Aren't we willing to put our money into decoration anymore?
I'd love to hear your opinion - the comments below is a good place to chat.
I believe including only the essential is about surviving but we need beauty to really thrive, so pattern and ornamentation could be sign of a thriving creative society.
I recently saw a video (by @andrea.magdalene), where it was suggested that sleek, minimalist architecture encourages flow and fast unhindered movement through space, while ornamental spaces give people things to look at, so they move slower. They stop, they look they reflect. Maybe it's time that we bring back some accents, some focal points of ornamentation for people to take time to slow down and pause. (You can watch the video here.)
Whether these accents are in our homes or in public places, we need more spaces where we can pause and reflect.
In today's newsletter/blog, I go back into history a little bit, having a look at how things were done in the past. I've included a link to some older pattern design inspiration, some architectural ornament that I discovered in a church yesterday and I'm repeating a historic printing video that shows how William Morris's block printing process, for those of you who haven't seen it.
If you're looking for some creative pause in your own life, I have some places left on Saturday's workshops - See below.
Enjoy! And do leave comments or your thoughts below!
Karené
UPCOMING WORKSHOPS
Saturday at the Old Barn, Edinburgh I will be teaching 2 workshops on 1 day. The idea is that you have the option to choose a 3 hr morning block printing or 3hr afternoon lino pattern session OR you could do both, have a full day of pattern printing immersion and get a 10% discount! A lovely relaxing morning printing session to experiment further with my wooden Indian blocks, have lunch at the café next door and then come back for an intense lino session. Bring your friends! I promise you'll go home buzzing!
31 MAY 2025:
31 May 2025 (AM): PART 1: Morning Block Printing workshop,
10am - 1pm, Printing on Tea Towels, Old Barn Edinburgh.
31 May 2025 (PM): PART 2: Afternoon Lino Pattern Printing workshop,
2pm - 5pm, Print your own motifs on tote bags,
Old Barn Edinburgh.
I will be taking June off to travel back to South Africa for a visit, so my next workshop is only scheduled for 26 August. I will be teaching a taster Block Printing Session in Milngavie, on the outskirts of Glasgow, at Gavin's Mill. It will be an evening weekday session of 2,5hrs and we will be block printing onto tote bags. Keep an eye out for it!
Christopher Dressler
If you enjoy historical design like William Morris, it might be worth following Allie Alvis @book_historia on Instagram. She is the Curator of Special Collections at the Winterthur Library in the US and often features historical pattern design in her reels with links to books that you can download for free!
In this video clip she introduces, Christopher Dressler
Christopher Dressler was born in Glasgow. He studied design in London and wrote many books on the topic. He had a huge influence on the Western design world and even on the Arts and Crafts movement. He also travelled extensively in Japan and wrote a book on Architecture, Art and Design there. ANYWAY here are some pictures to inspire you to go and have a look!
V&A William Morris Block Printing
This a wonderful video! Worth pouring a cup of tea and coming back to watch!
"In a process that can take up to 4 weeks, using 30 different blocks and 15 separate colours, this video recreates the painstaking process in reproducing a William Morris wallpaper design from 1874." (V&A, https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/william-morris-and-wallpaper-design)
William Morris is well-known for his intricate, bold designs and although they are not all really my taste (shock/horror), I do admire his work and his ideals about everyday objects having beauty, putting value in handmade things and the people who make them and his desire for more equality in society. Watch the video for some inspiration!
Ornament to make us pause and wonder - St Conan's Kirk
Yesterday, we were travelling along Loch Awe and stopped at St Conan's Kirk. This church started out as a place of worship for Walter Campbell's mother - but it seems he got quite carried away and built a church which was a mixture of all kinds of styles of ornament, with humourous moments inbetween. He had no rules and joyfully combined whatever he wanted. It was lovely to explore and find unexpected things like a waterspout in the shape of a rabbit, owls carved into stone and a pattern of stone leaves on the tower. He must've been quite an eccentric man. You can find out more here: https://stconanskirk.org.uk/about/
I am by no means a maximalist, but I do love pattern as an accent and I think it's time we take a page out of Walter's book and give ourselves permission to have fun, break some rules and decorate our world joyously again.
Comments