Jasmine

This stunning wallpaper design incorporates hawthorn leaves, blossoms and branches in a myriad of beauty, typical of artist William Morris.

Several pieces of research have been completed into the Jasmine design, as well as Morris' wallpaper designs more generally. One finding was that it is likely that Morris ran into problems when initially translating the design into printing blocks for the manufacture of the wallpaper. As such, a decision was made to reduce the number of blocks being used from 20 down to 11, thus simplying the process and getting around the issues that he faced. Several other attempted versions also ran into problems but he persevered, suggesting Morris was particularly keen on the original design.

The title of Jasmine refers to a elements in the foreground, with a green colourway used in many interpretations of the original design. Jasmine was published in 1872 by Morris & Co., though manufactured by their long running partner, Jeffrey & Co. Morris originally attempted to find a way to manufacture printed blocks himself but found he lacked the expertise in this area to produce sufficiently high quality products and eventually decided to make use of this London-based company's long running expertise instead.

William Morris found it hard to 'let go' when handing over his designs to others and was difficult to work with. He would be very hands on to ensure his ideals were met, but eventually he learned to trust the partners with whom he worked, and they equally understood and respected his desire for high standards. In other cases he would supervise all manner of different trades, such as weavers, where it became impossible for the artist to meet the requirements of a large commission by his own means alone.