Along bungalow lines Creating an arts & crafts home

INTRODUCTION Bringing the Past into the Present and Future Historical Overview: Beginnings of the Arts & Crafts Movement Over the last two decades, public interest in the decorative arts and architecture of the Arts & Crafts movement has continued to steadily grow and mature. Long-time devotees have recently observed that today's so-called "Arts & Crafts Revival" has now managed to sustain itself longer than the duration of the original movement. However, to clarify this observation, it should be noted that it makes reference to the movement's primary period of influence in America, not in England, where the movement was born. Although the term "Arts & Crafts" wasn't officially coined in its presently familiar context until the late 1880s, the movement's head start in England had already begun taking shape by the mid-nineteenth century. A watershed event in its early development was The Great Exhibition of 1851 in London, the first of such international extravaganzas that were soon to occur elsewhere across Europe and America. Among the most conspicuous stars of these blockbuster shows were displays of the latest machinery, signaling that modern technology was fast replacing human hands for certain tedious menial tasks. England's distinction at that time as the world's most industrialized nation was soon to be mightily challenged by the rapidly industrializing United States. Excerpted from Along Bungalow Lines: Creating an Arts and Crafts Style Home by Paul Duchscherer All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.