In the heart of a suburb just east of London stands an incongruous red brick villa. With its pointed arched window frames and towering chimneys, the house was designed to appear  like a relic of the Middle Ages. In reality, its vintage dates to the 1860?s. This is Red House, the Arts and Crafts home of artist William Morris and his family. Built as a rebuttal to an increasingly industrialized age, Red House?s message has been both diminished by the passage of time and, over the course of the centuries, been cast in greater relief against its context.

The L-shaped footprint of the building allows it to focus in on the garden. ImageCourtesy of Flickr user Gabrielle Ludlow (licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

In the heart of a suburb just east of London stands an incongruous red brick villa. With its pointed arched window frames and towering chimneys, the house was designed to appear  like a relic of the Middle Ages. In reality, its vintage dates to the 1860?s. This is Red House, the Arts and Crafts home of artist William Morris and his family. Built as a rebuttal to an increasingly industrialized age, Red House?s message has been both diminished by the passage of time and, over the course of the centuries, been cast in greater relief against its context.
Although relatively austere, the varying rooflines, oriel window, and pointed arch window frames add Gothic flair to the otherwise simplistic Red House. ImageCourtesy of Flickr user Gabrielle Ludlow...