Art And Craft Movements

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How the Arts and crafts movement was a reaction against the social, moral, and artistic confusion of the Industrial Revolution The Arts and Crafts Movement of the late nineteenth century was an attempt to improve society by creating objects and architecture of a more worthwhile nature. The movement began in England in the 1870's and soon spread to the United States where it was widely employed in the arts and in architecture. Advocates promoted its use among the middle class. Its continued endorsement among all social classes was seen as an empowerment to the poor who had suffered so much during the previous period of industrialization. The ideology of the Arts and Crafts Movement represented a reaction against the moral and material consequences of the industrial revolution. Its followers were concerned with the negative social and aesthetic impact of Victorian urbanization and what was believed to be an assault on the creative integrity of the design process through the division of labour and other industrial methods of production. Industrialization resulted in a decline in creativity as designs by engineers focused on efficiency. This resulted in a move away from handicraft in favor of mass-produced goods. In reaction against the social, moral, and artistic confusion of the Industrial Revolution, the Arts and Crafts Movement arose during the later part of the nineteenth century. The Arts and Crafts movement initially developed in England during the latter half of the 19th century. Subsequently this style was taken up by American designers, with somewhat different results. In the United States, the Arts and Crafts style was also known as Mission style. This movement, which challenged the tastes of the Victorian era, was inspired by the social reform concerns of thinkers such as Walter Crane and John Ruskin, together with the ideals of reformer and
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