Beauty and Art

This rare book, unabridged with a new introduction, is from a long neglected master of interior design, who brilliantly examines aesthetics and beauty, using a surprisingly wide range of specific examples, from interior design and architecture, to textiles and clothing.

Aldam Heaton was an associate of the William Morris circle, and a friend of Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Inspired by Neo-Classical style, he practiced interior design in London. Besides his work on the ill-fated cruise ship Titanic ? he designed its State Rooms ? he gained commissions for the interiors of notable houses and churches. He also worked closely with a number of prominent artists, including architect Richard Norman Shaw.

Heaton combines criticism, politics, and nationalism, all within a high literary style. At the same time that he condemns the masses? lack of knowledge of art, he also deplores the indolence of the aristocracy in promoting and subsidizing great art. The aspiring connoisseur of taste is informed as to which designers should be supported, and which ones avoided. The work of Thomas Chippendale, Robert and James Adam, Matthias Darly, M. A. Pergolesi, Thomas Sheraton and others is carefully analyzed and evaluated.

With his knowledge of the theoretical and practical aspects of design, Aldam Heaton makes Beauty and Art an indispensable guide to understanding the decorative arts.