A revelatory new exhibition, ‘Mountains and plains and adventure’: William & May Morris and Iceland, will open at Kelmscott Manor on the 6th June, aimed to coincide with the centenary of May Morris’s first trip to Iceland.
Visitors to Kelmscott Manor can still experience the spirit of Iceland, most dramatically when they encounter the topiary Fafnir yew hedge, originally cut by William Morris (1834–1896). Morris was one of the Victorian era’s great polymaths - writer, designer, conservationist and social thinker, antiquary and scholar of Icelandic. Morris’s daughter May (1862–1938), also a designer, acknowledged expert on historic embroidery and with an interest in material culture akin to her father’s, knew Iceland from girlhood through his abiding enthusiasm for its literature and culture. Both had a lengthy and meaningful relationship with the country and were warmly welcomed by Icelanders.
Morris earned the Icelanders’ lasting affection and gratitude for his cultural and financial contributions to Icelandic society. May Morris was awarded the country’s highest honour, the Order of the Falcon, in 1930. Today, William Morris is still held in high regard in Iceland but May is virtually unknown. Using as its basis the previously unknown diaries she wrote during her Icelandic travels, this exhibition is the first to explore her relationship with Iceland. For the first time May’s Icelandic adventures can be examined comparatively with her father’s better-known experiences and impressions; her observations highlight what had remained constant and what had changed in the intervening years.

Kelmscott Manor is open to the public from 4 April - 26 October 2024.
Opening times: Thursday, Friday & Saturday – 10.30am to 5pm, last entry to Manor house 4pm.
Pre-booking online is advisable, bookings are now being taken.
Admission costs: Adults: £15, concessions (students and children 5–16) £9.50, family (2 adults & 2 children) £35.00. Pay once and return for free all year with our Annual Pass (T&Cs apply).