Red House is the only house that was commissioned, created, and lived in by William Morris, founder of the Arts and Crafts movement. Red House is a building of extraordinary architectural and social significance, and of great interest to contemporary artists and their interdisciplinary networks. When Red House was completed in 1860, it was described by Edward Burne-Jones as 'the beautifullest place on earth'; from which this project takes its name. Red House was a site for young artists to collaborate and develop their skills and burgeoning, utopian vision, and it is this concept that we want to explore again.

‘The Beautifullest Place On Earth’, a collaboration between the Slade School of Fine Art and Red House, revived the property as a centre for artistic practice. Artists, art historians, anthropologists and political theorists from UCL worked with Museum staff to explore the legacies of politics, aesthetics and utopian visions through a programme of public talks, workshops and artist residencies.

Project Leads

• Melanie Jackson, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Head of Undergraduate Sculpture, The Slade School of Fine Art
• Kieren Reed The Slade School of Fine Art
• James Breslin,  House and Gardens Manager, Red House (Smaller London Properties Group