Some Rooms at Red House

Leading off the entrance hall is the original dining room, though Morris and his friends often ate an oak trestle table in the hall. The most striking feature is another cupboard designed by Philip Webb. Large and practical and painted in what Morris and Webb called ‘Dragon’s Blood’, it is typical of his work. Also in the room are examples of wallpaper by Morris (Sunflower: 1879) and fabric by Henry Dearle (Golden Lily: 1897). In the typical brick fireplace are some Delft tiles, one of the few decorative items (another being Persian carpets) that Morris was willing to purchase commercially.

Though perhaps less dramatic, the Studio is, for some visitors, their favourite room. Lit from windows on three sides, it is airy and reassuring, with a lovely view overlooking the well. The ceiling in the room is a good example of a process that was common in the house. The design was pierced into the ceiling by Morris, then painted by his friends. It was then possible to keep repainting to the original design.

Intended to be the ‘most beautiful room in England’, the drawing room is possibly the most famous room of the house. 

Another noticeable feature is the large brick fireplace with, over the top of it, the motto ‘Ars Longa, Vita Brevis’ translated either as ‘Art is Long, Life is Short’ or ‘The life so short, the craft so long to learn’. Finally, there is the lovely oriel window, looking out over the west lawn.

The tour of the house also takes in the bedrooms, showing a range of Morris’s wallpapers and fabrics combined with the modern necessities of life and some more contemporary furnishings and art. Visitors are often struck by the very domestic scale of the house. There may be quite a large number of rooms and they may be decoratively dramatic, but they always feel as if you might live in them. This is a tribute to William Morris and Philip Webb in their original conception of the house and Ted and Doris Hollamby in the way they restored it.