The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1906-11-20
new MOVEMENT is
MADE VERY PLAIN
Teachers and Citizens Ex-
planned Arts and Crafts at
the High School.
TALK BY F. w. WHITING
FURNITURE COMPANIES OF
GRAND RAPIDS SCORED FOR
SHAM FURNITURE WHICH THEY
TURN OUT.

F. Whiting of Boston, who has
come West to attend the opening of
the Heron Art Institute at Indianapo-
lis, spoke in the high school chapel
yesterday afternoon at three O'Clock to
about two hundred and fifty teachers
and citizens of Richmond on The Arts
and Crafts Movement"
Mr. Whiting explained the mean
ing of the arts and crafts movement,
showing that what was desired in this
country now was that a man should be
proud of his work, as it was in the
medieval times and before the factory
system arose. Then, he stated. that
a mans standing depended on the
character of his work. Then the
workman had a personality and he
I,was a responsible man, according to
the speaker.
Then came labor saving Devices,
he said, shop hands took the place of
craftsmen. This was the first step
in the capitalistic SYSTEM
He contrasted the chairs built by
master workmen with the chairs made
today in the factories where each
man runs a machine, his whole aim
being to turn out the greatest number
of pieces which will pass inspection
and has no idea of the completed
product.
The speaker then took a fling at the
furniture companies of Grand Rapids.
Michigan, stating that they deceived
The public with cheap limitations of the
master workman. BY a little veneer
ing, he said, the companies made the
public believe they were buying the
real thing.
A history of the arts and crafts
movement was given in which it was
shown that the movement 9ltC back
to the thirteenth and fourteenth cen
turtles He said that the present mod
ern movement began in England in the
early nineteenth century. He quoted
Carlyle, where the great writer said
that England had gotten away from
work Mr.. Whiting said that at that
time the women of the English lake re-
gion could find nothing TO do. Then
he said Ruskin came, looked around
and started the spinning wheels run
ming The speaker advised the teach
ers to read "Ruskin and the English
Lake District William Morris was
named as the second great worker in
this movement and the work of Toym-
bee Hall in London was also explain
ed. He showed how the movement
had gone so far that even the munich
paIities of Manchester, Birmingham
and London had established schools of
crafts.
The movement which has originated
very recently in America, was taken
up. The marvellous growth of the
movement in this country was shown
by the two great fairs, one at Chica-
go and the other at st. Louis. At the
Chicago fair the space offered for arts
and crafts was taken while at St Lou
is there were one thousand entries for
prizes. Next to Japan, America had
the best exhibit at the St louis Expo
sition. The growth of the movement
in Boston, the speaker showed, by com
pairing the work in 1900, when there
was but one small salesroom, requir-
ing but one man for an hour or two
day, and at the present time, when
the entire ground floor of the old Tick
nor House is taken by the society and
five persons are employed. Last year
he said they sold $4,000 sworth Of
handicrafts.
He took up the decoration of houses,
criticising the American standard of
taste as too flamboyant. He said that
the interior decorations did not repre-
sent the lives of the people. 1T is
better to have home of our design
ing" he said, even if plain, than a
home designed by a paid decorator.
Our houses show how we are depend
ent on style.
In closing he expressed the hope
that the arts and crafts movement
would be established in connection
with the public schools.