In the late 19th century Americans were beginning to tire of the excesses inherent in Victorian taste. Simplicity — less decoration, a return to hand-craftsmanship and an appreciation of a more natural aesthetic — became the focus. This simpler style, known as the Arts & Crafts Movement, had been popular in England since the mid-19th century. Elbert Hubbard, who visited England in 1894 and was inspired by a tour of William Morris’s Kelmscott Press, established the Roycroft Printing Shop in East Aurora, NY in 1895.

Elbert Hubbard was a remarkably energetic individual with savvy marketing skills and within five years he was producing not only books, but also metalwares and furniture. Many of Roycroft’s employees lived close to the shops in which they worked and formed a loose-knit but focused community in and around the Roycroft campus.

Elbert Hubbard and the Roycroft community are forever linked to Asheville through The Grove Park Inn, which houses many Roycroft pieces. Fred Seely, Edwin Wiley Grove’s son-in-law and the man most responsible for The Grove Park Inn had been introduced to the Arts & Crafts Movement through Elbert Hubbard. Seely had visited the Roycroft Community several times and he decided that the Roycrofters should provide all of the lighting for the Inn as well as specific pieces of furniture. Today the Inn is the host for The Grove Park Inn Arts & Crafts Conference held each year in February and continues to care for a large collection of Roycroft material.

Love, Live, and Work: The Roycroft Legacy was organized by the Burchfield-Penney Art Center in Buffalo, NY. The exhibition, including furniture, lighting, books and metalware, was expanded through specific works from The Grove Park Inn and other Asheville collections to explore Western North Carolina’s unique relationship to the Arts & Crafts Movement.

Major exhibition support for Love, Live, and Work: The Roycroft Legacy was received from The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa. Additional support provided by Griffin Architects, Mr. Scott D. Riviere and Mr. Robert Sauer and Suzanne and Stephen Jones. The exhibition was organized by the Burchfield-Penney Art Center at Buffalo State College, Buffalo, NY and Curated by Special Projects Curator Lynne Poirier-Wilson.

Image Credit:
Roycroft, Rocker, Circa 1910, Mahogany, leather and metal tacks, 38 x 28 x 31 inches. Gift of Marilyn Anderson and Jon Garlock, 1996. Courtesy of the Charles Rand Penney Roycroft Collection at the Burchfield-Penney Art Center.