Alumna Dr Louise Atkinson commissioned to create new artwork for a major exhibition celebrating designer William Morris
A newly commissioned artwork by artist-researcher and fine art alumna Dr Louise Atkinson is on display in a new exhibition at Watts Gallery in Compton, Surrey.
Open until 10 January 2027, The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. is an opportunity to see original 19th century samples of iconic wallpaper designed by William Morris (1834-1896) and his circle that revolutionised interior design.
William Morris was renowned for his deep love of nature and commitment to craftsmanship, placing process, natural design and integrity at the heart of his work.
This new exhibition brings together more than 30 original 19th-century wallpaper designs that transformed interior decoration and established Morris and his collaborators as central figures in the Arts & Crafts movement.
It reveals the stories behind the patterns, from intricate studies of flora and fauna to the hand-printing techniques that defined the Arts and Crafts ethos.
The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. exhibition at Watts Gallery in Compton, Surrey. Photo by Libby Whyte. Image © Watts Gallery Trust.
Alongside these historic works, the exhibition also features two newly commissioned works – a wallpaper design by Louise Atkinson and a film by artist Freddie Yauner.
Dr Louise Atkinson’s commissioned design – Heterotopia – explores Arts and Crafts conceptions of utopia through the intertwined yet distinct practices of May Morris and Mary Watts.
Drawing on Morris’s socialist belief in dignified labour and everyday beauty, and Watts’s spiritually infused Symbolism, the work considers how female Victorian artists and designers imagined a better world.
Louise Atkinson, Heterotopia, 2026. Image courtesy of the artist.
Louise Atkinson is a visual artist, researcher and facilitator whose practice spans sculpture, repeat pattern design and digital media.
Louise was awarded a practice-based PhD from the School of Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies in 2016 and is currently a Visiting Research Fellow in the school.
Louise’s work often combines historical research with collaborative and ethnographic approaches, working with communities to produce new interpretations of collections and cultural objects. A central strand of her practice is wallpaper as both a visual form and a cultural medium through which to explore overlooked histories, heritage and identity.
In recognition of her work in this field, she was awarded the 2024 Wallpaper History Society Merryl Huxtable Bursary.
Louise Atkinson, Tang Yuan, Digital drawing and augmented reality, 2025. On display at the Pictures of Tilling and Weaving exhibition in Project Space, University of Leeds, from 23 September to 3 October 2025.
Recent projects include If Walls Could Talk (2025), developed at Harewood House in collaboration with Chinese-speaking communities in Leeds, which reimagined Chinese export wallpaper through augmented reality and participatory art practice.
Her augmented reality intervention Super/Market was exhibited at Harewood House, alongside the supplementary exhibition, Pictures of Tilling and Weaving at the University of Leeds.
She is currently Artist-in-Residence on the Wellcome Trust-funded research project Cripping Breath: Towards a New Cultural Politics of Respiration, where she is currently developing a further wallpaper design to be exhibited at the Florence Nightingale Museum, London, in 2027.
Louise Atkinson, Untitled, 2023. Digital collage of ‘The Peacock Garden’ by Walter Crane in the shape of lungs on a light blue background. Image courtesy of the artist.
Louise reflected on the commission for The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. exhibition:
“My wallpaper design emerged from research into the Arcadia wallpaper by May Morris and the tree of life motif found in Mary Watts’ designs for the Watts Mortuary Chapel, which opened in 1898.
“In developing Heterotopia, I wanted to emphasise their ideas and visual languages, exploring how their commitment to creating a more equitable world was enacted through their work.
“Although inspired by 19th-century design, the work is made using digital processes, connecting historical approaches to contemporary methods of making and reproduction.”
Louise Atkinson with Heterotopia at the The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. exhibition, Watts Gallery, Surrey. Photo by Libby Whyte.
Corinna Henderson, Exhibitions Curator for The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. at Watts Gallery, said:
“Louise's work brings a fresh perspective to the exhibition by drawing attention to the often-overlooked contributions of women within the Arts & Crafts movement.
“Louise combines rigorous research with a striking visual language. I couldn’t have wished for a more rewarding artist–curator relationship."
The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. exhibition at Watts Gallery in Compton, Surrey. Photo by Libby Whyte. Image © Watts Gallery Trust.
More information
Find out about Dr Louise Atkinson’s research and practice.
The Art of Wallpaper: Morris & Co. runs from 21 May to 10 January 2027 at Watts Gallery, Down Lane, Guildford GU3 1DQ.
Watts Gallery is open Wednesday to Sunday and Bank holidays, from 10.00am to 5.00pm. Find out more about the exhibition and events programme.
Louise will giving an online lunchtime talk on 15 September about her work in the exhibition. Full details will be published on the Watts Gallery website nearer the time.
Feature image
Detail from Louise Atkinson’s Heterotopia, 2026. Image courtesy of the artist.
