Our Story
The Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture (MoDA) developed from a number of collections acquired by Middlesex University between the late 1960s and the 1990s. The first and most important of these was the Silver Studio Collection, which was given to what was then the Hornsey College of Art in 1966.
MoDA is part of Middlesex University. We are an accessible research collection and we welcome students, researchers and members of the public by appointment. Find out more here: https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/visit-us/about-appointments/
Our mission is to preserve and hold in trust for society our internationally important collections relating to British domestic design and architecture 1870-1960. MoDA is committed to exploring the collections with our audiences, co-creating knowledge and understanding and using the collections to inspire creativity. We support and challenge audiences to learn with and from the collections, to demonstrate their learning in varied ways, and to feed that knowledge back into a shared knowledge base.
For other enquiries visit https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/visit-us/contact-us/
or please call 020 8411 5244 or email [email protected]
Read more about MoDA at https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/
Comments
We're going to RHS Chelsea Flower Show for today as the natural world is a great inspiration for wallpaper designs, with many using the idea of bringing the outside into homes. Perhaps the most well-known examples of this are the Arts and Crafts designs of William Morris. One of the gold-medal-winning Show Gardens at this year's brings this idea full circle, with a garden based on two of William Morris's designs - 'Trellis' and 'Willow Bough' brought to life by Ruth Willmott Associates sponsored by William Morris & Co
Take a look at those designs here and those of Morris's contemporary Arthur Silver of The Silver Studio. Are there particular garden favourites that you think would make good wallpaper designs - a favourite flower or shapely plant leaf?
Today's post showcases an Association of Independent Museums funded conservation project focused on original Art Nouveau stencilled wallcoverings on paper, grasspaper and textile from our Silver Studio Collection. These stencilled materials were made in the 1890s. They were made by the designers who worked for the Silver Studio who were informed by stencilling techniques from Japan.
This conservation work followed on from a major Arts Council England research project called Katagami In Practice that we conducted between 2016 and 2018 looking at our collection of Japanese Katagmai stencils. We believe the stencilled materials within this conservation project were made in response to those original Japanese examples. They demonstrate the Silver Studio’s engagement with Japanese influences in their development of British Art Nouveau.
https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/2019/09/16/stencil-conservation-completed/
Only 12 new English Heritage blue plaques are unveiled each year, and this month saw one unveiled on the designer Enid Marx’s former home at 39 Thornhill Square where she lived with her life partner Margaret Lambeth. She created patterns, book covers, stamps, illustrations and more, and was a contemporary of and ,
To find out more about our Enid Marx collection visit
https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/stories/enid-marx/ and watch the video as Lotte Beatrix explores why Enid Marx deserves a higher profile and the recognition that the blue plaque will hopefully help to bring.
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Sharing another podcast episode for . In Home Dis(Comforts) delve into MoDA's wallpaper and ephemera collection to explore the relationships between domestic spaces, gender and mental health.
http://ow.ly/5mwi50IbWxs
Gendered narratives is a resource on our website which explores how gender has been constructed through popular images, using fashion magazines, catalogues, books and ephemera.
https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/gender/
On we take a look back to our podcast and the episode Home Work/House Work with and . Have a listen
http://ow.ly/SCQ350IbOga
Are you enjoying the early signs of spring? is this dress print design of jonquil flowers by Winifred Mold in 1931. The design is featured in 'Petal Power' which explores the work of women designers at the Silver Studio of Design. You can purchase the publication here
http://ow.ly/auz650I99SL
The is this (japanese stencil). The katagami designs have great significance within Japanese culture. This one, with pine trees and grain, symbolises longevity. It is also featured in this 2022 calendar which you can buy here
http://ow.ly/10Vl50HUk9J
Seasonal greetings from all of us at MoDA. We are now closed and will reopen on 4th January. We look forward to your enquiries and at the moment you can still book an appointment for next year
https://moda.mdx.ac.uk/appointments/.