The De Morgan Centre for the Study of 19th Century Art and Society is a museum and gallery in the London Borough of Wandsworth

London Borough of Wandsworth

The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, that houses a large collection of the work of the Victorian

Victorian era

The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...

 ceramic artist William De Morgan

William De Morgan

William Frend De Morgan was an English potter and tile designer. A lifelong friend of William Morris, he designed tiles, stained glass and furniture for Morris & Co. from 1863 to 1872. His tiles are often based on medieval designs or Persian patterns, and he experimented with innovative glazes and...

 and his wife, the painter Evelyn De Morgan

Evelyn De Morgan

Evelyn De Morgan was an English Pre-Raphaelite painter.She was born Evelyn Pickering. Her parents were of upper middle class. Her father was Percival Pickering QC, the Recorder of Pontefract...

.

The ceramics collection includes vases, tiles and panels. William De Morgan is credited with the rediscovery of the art of lustre

Lustre

Lustre or Luster may refer to:* Lustre , a description of the way light interacts with the surface of a crystal, rock or mineral* Lusterware, ceramics with lustre glazes* Lustre , a Free Software distributed file system...

. His work was influenced by the Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

ic tiles he has seen at the South Kensington Museum. Evelyn de Morgan's art is notable for her rich use of colour and her emphasis on strong female protagonists. The De Morgans were involved in the social issues of the day such as women's suffrage

Women's suffrage

Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...

, and this engagement is covered by the museum.

The collection was formed by Evelyn De Morgan's sister, Mrs Wilhelmina Stirling, who wrote several books under the name A.M.W. Stirling

A.M.W. Stirling

A.M.W. Stirling was the author of several books dealing mostly with the lives and reminiscences of the British landed gentry of Yorkshire...

. It had been previously on display at her home, Old Battersea

Battersea

Battersea is an area of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is an inner-city district of South London, situated on the south side of the River Thames, 2.9 miles south-west of Charing Cross. Battersea spans from Fairfield in the west to Queenstown in the east...

 House. In the years following her death in 1965 parts of the collection were displayed at a number of locations including Cardiff Castle

Cardiff Castle

Cardiff Castle is a medieval castle and Victorian architecture Gothic revival mansion, transformed from a Norman keep erected over a Roman fort in the Castle Quarter of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The Castle is a Grade I Listed Building.-The Roman fort:...

, Cragside

Cragside

Cragside is a country house in the civil parish of Cartington in Northumberland, England. It was the first house in the world to be lit using hydroelectric power...

 in Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

 and Knightshayes Court

Knightshayes Court

Knightshayes Court is a Victorian country house in Tiverton, Devon, England, designed by William Burges for the Heathcoat-Amory family. Nikolaus Pevsner describes it as "an eloquent expression of High Victorian ideals in a country house of moderate size." The house is Grade I listed as of 12 May...

 in Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

, all of which have interiors from the years when the De Morgans were active. In 2002, it was rehoused at the former West Hill Reference Library in Wandsworth

Wandsworth

Wandsworth is a district of south London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-Toponymy:...

, in south west London, which dates from 1887.

The De Morgan Centre is open to the public four days a week. There is a programme of exhibitions of work by contemporary designers.