One of the eminent figures of the Victorian era, Henry Cole (1808-1882) was a visionary whose pioneering ideas helped create the magnificent London museum that is now called the Victoria and Albert. With Prince Albert (consort of Queen Victoria), "Old King Cole" also helped to make London's Great Exhibition of 1851 a rousing triumph. Yet Cole's important contributions to cultural history have largely been forgotten.The Great Exhibitor is the first full-length biography of this museum pioneer who also played a pivotal role in establishing the English postal system, in expanding the railway, and in art and science education. This detailed portrait captures the personality of a man who in his own time aroused both admiration and antipathy, and restores to his proper place in history a larger-than-life Victorian phenomenon.

The Great Exhibitor: The Life and Work of Henry Cole (Victoria and Albert Museum Catalogues)

Biographies & Memoirs

BURTON, Anthony

Bonython, Elizabeth

Arts & Literature

V&A Publishing

The collection of Italian bronzes at the Victoria and Albert Museum is extraordinary for its size, variety, and scope. The first book in English devoted to the subject, this fully illustrated volume provides a complete catalogue of a key part of this collection -- 75 small bells, mortars, and related utensils mainly from the Renaissance period.Bells & Mortars contains details of inscriptions and makers' marks and substantial technical information, including data based on X-ray examination and metal analysis. Essays set the bronzes into their broader historical, religious, and pharmaceutical contexts, making this catalogue invaluable to scholars and collectors as well as those with an interest in pharmaceutical history.

Bells and Mortars: Catalogue of Italian Bronzes in the Victoria and Albert Museum

Arts & Photography

Motture, Peta

History & Criticism

Filled with lovely scenes of 19th-century England, this beautiful book is a nostalgic glimpse of a vanished world through the lens of Benjamin Brecknell Turner (1815 -- 1894), one of the first, and one of the greatest, of early British photographers.
A tranquil stillness pervades Turner's evocative images of churches, cottages, old farm buildings, and ancient ruins. In stark contrast are his shots of the radically modern, long-gone Crystal Palace in London's Hyde Park. Also here are his subtly toned portrait photographs, and his 1857 pictures of Amsterdam that are among the earliest known photographs of that city. This first monograph on Turner's work accompanies an exhibition in early 2002 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Benjamin Brecknell Turner: Rural England Through a Victorian Lens

Barnes, Martin

Individual Artists

An illustrated survey of the use of tiles in interior design through the ages, from the Gothic through to Art Deco and the Omega Workshops in the 20th century. Many different styles are revealed through tilework, from the mellow Delftware depicted in paintings by Dutch masters, to the lively, inventive decoration adopted by Duncan Grant at his Charleston farmhouse. The influence of the Islamic world is shown in the tiles of Moorish Spain and the Victorian period, while the Gothic, and its revival in the 19th century, the Renaissance and Modernism are all represented. The book is illustrated with an array of pictures, which include not only individual tiles but also patterned and pictorial tile panels and items such as ceramic stoves as well as authentic interiors and elements of exterior decoration. Paintings and drawings set the tiles in context. Tiles have provided a particularly fertile opportunity for decoration, employing numerous ceramic techniques and an endless variety of styles through the centuries. Different tile-making processes are discussed and the continuing introduction of new practices is recorded, conveying a sense of the richness and diversity of the traditions of tilework in Europe. Appealing to collectors and to those interested in architecture and interior design, the book draws on the unique collections at the V&amp;A to provide a visual resource and a survey of a popular subject.

Tiles and Tilework of Europe

Graves, Alun

William Morris's wallpaper, carpets, and other textile designs are as popular today as they were when he created them in the late 1880s. One of the most influential figures in the history of the decorative arts, Morris (1834-1896) challenged the mass-production methods of the industrial revolution and launched the revival of handcrafted work that became known as the Arts and Crafts movement. His firm, Morris &amp; Co, created wood furniture, hand-woven tapestries, embroideries, printed textiles, woven fabrics, stained glass, tiles, and block-printed wallpapers, many of which are still being produced--by the same methods--more than a century later. This new book shows how to incorporate Morris's designs and theories into contemporary interiors. Carefully chosen photographs show a wide variety of rooms using Morris designs, and include details of individual textile and wallpaper patterns. Inspired by nature and featuring soft, pure colors, Morris's designs are classics, still relevant and stylish in today's interiors.

William Morris and Morris & Co.

Linda, Parry

Lucia Van Der Post

Decorative Arts & Design

This long-overdue volume showcases the Victoria and Albert Museum's outstanding holdings of stained and painted glass--a peerless collection ranging in date from c.1140 to 1540. The works include important examples from England, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Italy. More than 100 color plates and selected color details show the full range of this magnificent collection, from large panels from key churches and cathedrals such as La Sainte-Chapelle, St. Germain des pres, Cologne, Bruges, Canterbury, and Winchester to small but no less beautiful fragments. Commentaries on each of the pieces reconstruct their original context and explain their imagery; the text discusses techniques, themes, and major centers of production, illuminating a golden age of stained glass production, this beautiful book provides an indispensable introduction to the subject.

Medieval and Renaissance Stained Glass in the Victoria And Albert Museum

Williamson, Paul

Collections, Catalogs & Exhibitions

This volume introduces some of the most creative names in contemporary lighting, from Ron Arad to Karim Rashid, and focuses on experimental uses of light in the designed environment. Featuring heat-resistant fabrics, cool light sources, and new materials that pulse and glow without the need for wires, the book also presents lighting we can sit on, sleep under, and even wear.

Brilliant: Lights & Lighting (V & A Contemporary)

Pavitt, Jane

Architecture

This riveting analysis looks at the relationship between people, designers, and electronic products. It speculates on how, in the future, cell phones, personal computers, audio equipment, and televisions may merge into one all-purpose tool, blending into the fabric of our homes and offices or even disappearing into our bodies. David Redhead focuses on the role of designers in shaping this brave new world.

V&A Contemporary: Electric Dreams (V & A Contemporary Series)

Redhead, David

Graphic Design

The creation of the British Galleries 1500-1900 at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, was the largest gallery project for 50 years at the world's most important museum of design and the decorative arts. When they opened in 2001, after five years' work, the British Galleries were hailed as groundbreaking and stunningly beautiful, and went on to win for the V&amp;A the European Museum of the Year Award (2003). This book, written by those directly involved, records in detail how the new galleries were created, from concept to practical realisation. Comprehensively illustrated and supplemented with original working documents, it covers topics including the creation of the galleries' thematic and historical structure, the working methods and organisation of the project, and the educational strategy. The book will be of special interest to students and professionals in the museum world.

The Making of the British Galleries at the V&A: A Study in Museology

WILK, Christopher

Humphrey, Nick

Christopher Dresser (18341904) was the first industrial designer of the modern era. A true radical, he favored form over ornament, and his stylish, spare, and astonishingly modern designs contrast sharply with the highly ornate work of his Victorian contemporaries. Believing that good design could be popularized through industry, Dresser worked with more than 50 manufacturers to produce an enormous variety of reasonably priced, widely available consumer products. This book is published to accompany the first comprehensive exhibition devoted to his career. More than 300 superb color photographs reveal Dresser's highly innovative ceramics, cast-iron garden furniture, and stark, geometric silverplate tableware, as well as previously unattributed designs for textiles, wallpaper, and glass. With essays based on the latest research, this stunning volume brings Dresser the attention he deserves.

Shock of the Old: Christopher Dresser's Design Revolution

Whiteway, Michael

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