Keswick School of Industrial Art
Encyclopedia
Keswick School of Industrial Art (KSIA) was founded in 1884 by Canon Hardwicke Rawnsley
and his wife Edith as an evening class of repoussé‚ metalwork in the Crosthwaite Parish Rooms, just outside Keswick, Cumbria
.
Copper
had been mined for many years nearby in the Lake District
but operations had declined by the time the School was founded; supplies of copper sheet were obtained commercially.
Rawnsley was a close friend of John Ruskin
, whose art and writings laid the foundation of the Arts and crafts movement
.
The School prospered and swiftly developed a reputation for high quality copper and silver decorative metalwork. By 1890 the School was exhibiting nationally and winning prizes.
The school closed in 1984, having faced increasing pressure from imported goods.
Keswick Museum and Art Gallery
is currently collecting and displaying many of the school's works.
Hardwicke Rawnsley
Canon Hardwicke Drummond Rawnsley , was an English clergyman, poet, writer of hymns and conservationist, known as one of the co-founders of the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty...
and his wife Edith as an evening class of repoussé‚ metalwork in the Crosthwaite Parish Rooms, just outside Keswick, Cumbria
Keswick, Cumbria
Keswick is a market town and civil parish within the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria, England. It had a population of 4,984, according to the 2001 census, and is situated just north of Derwent Water, and a short distance from Bassenthwaite Lake, both in the Lake District National Park...
.
Copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
had been mined for many years nearby in the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
but operations had declined by the time the School was founded; supplies of copper sheet were obtained commercially.
Rawnsley was a close friend of John Ruskin
John Ruskin
John Ruskin was the leading English art critic of the Victorian era, also an art patron, draughtsman, watercolourist, a prominent social thinker and philanthropist. He wrote on subjects ranging from geology to architecture, myth to ornithology, literature to education, and botany to political...
, whose art and writings laid the foundation of the Arts and crafts movement
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
.
The School prospered and swiftly developed a reputation for high quality copper and silver decorative metalwork. By 1890 the School was exhibiting nationally and winning prizes.
The school closed in 1984, having faced increasing pressure from imported goods.
Keswick Museum and Art Gallery
Keswick Museum and Art Gallery
The Keswick Museum and Art Gallery in Cumbria was founded in 1873 and had a number of temporary homes as it grew, including the Moot Hall in Keswick town centre....
is currently collecting and displaying many of the school's works.
Further reading
- The Arts and Crafts Movement in the Lake District: a Social History by Jennie Brunton. ISBN 978-1-86220-111-8
- The Loving Eye and Skilful Hand: The Keswick School of Industrial Arts by Ian Bruce. (2001) published by Bookcase.