Morris & Co. and Ben Pentreath

Morris & Co. and Ben Pentreath

Morris & Co and Ben Pentreath have collaborated on two collections of fabrics and wallpapers; firstly ‘Queen Square’ in 2020 and then ‘Cornubia’ in 2022, with Ben Pentreath recolouring original Morris designs.

The Sanderson design studio (the Sanderson Design Group owns Morris & Co.) recoloured many of William Morris’ original designs in the 1960s using rich, beautiful tones – turquoise, burnt orange and olive greens – with the resulting success of the range proving just how versatile and enduring the original 19th century designs are. Those of us who were around in the 1970s and 1980s well remember how popular these new collections were as we grew up surrounded by these Morris wallpapers and fabrics.

Perhaps thinking back to the inspiration of those days, some fifty years later, Morris & Co. approached renowned interior designer and architect Ben Pentreath, a long-term admirer of the Morris archive, to produce a new collection of recoloured wallpapers and fabrics. The first collection ‘Queen Square’, named after the location of the first Morris & Co factory and showroom, featured 18 fabrics and 18 wallpapers using the original Morris designs beautifully recoloured by Ben.

The success of Queen Square led to a further collaboration with the ‘Cornubia’ collection, this time named after the Latin name for Cornwall, home to the Pentreath family roots. Ben chose a new palette for this collection, looking for a brighter and sunnier mood, with colours of the spring and summer; soft pinks, bright apple greens, lemon yellow and tangerine.

The photo above is a Roman Blind made from Marigold in Cream/Orange from the Cornubia collection, it typifies Ben’s  wonderful contribution.

Cornubia also comprises 18 fabrics and 18 wallpapers and as well as giving a modern twist to the ever-popular classics with new colours and combinations; two old patterns unused for many years – Merton (formerly known as ‘Eden’) and Woodland Weeds - were also recoloured and added to the collection.

You can see both collections in full at sandersondesigngroup.com