Century Guild of Artists
Active: 1882 - 1888
Function: Art guild
Policy: ‘...to render all branches of Art the sphere no longer of the tradesman but of the Artist’ (Arthur Heygate Mackmurdo founder of the Century Guild writing in the first issue of the associated journal, 'The Hobby Horse' April 1884).
History or description: The Guild employed many craftsmen and created furniture, decorative metalwork, as well as wallpaper and fabrics designs. During its six year existence, the Century Guild had a limited output. However, the designs were influential as a result of the Guild's participation in a number of important exhibitions, including: the Health Exhibition, London (1884); Inventions Exhibition, London (1885); the Liverpool International Exhibition (1886); and the Manchester Jubilee Exhibition (1887). The Guild also published a journal, 'The Hobby Horse' (single issue in 1884, then 1886-92), which further disseminated its ideas and output.
An article by Aymer Vallance, 'Mr. Arthur H. Mackmurdo and the Century Guild', 'The Studio', 16 (1899): 183-92 is available online athttp://www.victorianweb.org/art/design/mackmurdo/vallance.html (accessed 12 October 2010)
Works
Dates are usually the year a work was exhibited so may differ from date of production.
New entries have been made each time a work was exhibited due to a lack of evidence about the state, medium or edition shown.
Created Frieze in plaster for Cutler's Hall
artist name unmentioned; possibly B. Creswick
Exhibited Haymaker
One of group's submissions to the first ACES show in 1888.
Exhibited A True Workman and Grinder
One of group's submissions to the first ACES show in 1888.
Exhibited The Village Smith: 'Under a spreading chesnut tree'
One of group's submissions to the first ACES show in 1888.
Exhibited The Village Smith: 'He goes on Sunday to the church'
One of group's submissions to the first ACES show in 1888.
Exhibited The Village Smith: 'The children coming home from school'
One of group's submissions to the first ACES show in 1888.
Exhibited Four plaster casts: decorative
One of group's submissions to the first ACES show in 1888
Exhibited Miner at work
Part of guild's submission to the ACES exhibition in 1888.
Exhibited Study for gargoyle: cast in plaster, for stone or terracotta
one of Guild's submissions to the ACES show in 1888
Exhibited Haymaker and Man with scythe
1888
One of group's submissions to the 1888 exhibition of the ACES.
Associated People
Associates included (George) Heywood Maunoir Sumner
1884
Duration of this connection not known
Associates included Benjamin Creswick
1886 (Circa) - 1888
Founded by Arthur Heygate MackMurdo
1882 - 1888
Sources
Arts and Crafts Society: Catalogue of the First Exhibition.
1888
pp.131-133, p.140, p.150, p.154, p.158.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
2004
Peyton Skipwith, ‘Mackmurdo, Arthur Heygate (1851–1942)’, rev. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/37715, accessed 12 Oct 2010]
Citing this record
'Century Guild of Artists', Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, University of Glasgow History of Art and HATII, online database 2011 [http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/organization.php?id=msib2_1209429129, accessed 27 Sep 2023]
