William Frend De Morgan
1839-1917

De Morgan started out as a stained glass designer, and later became a potter, experimenting with glazed and rediscovering methods of making the intense greens and blues used in Majolica wares, and using these tints in new designs. He supplied William Morris from his kiln at his home in Chelsea, London, before moving his pottery works to Merton in 1881 and then to Fulham in 1886. He married Evelyn Pickering, the painter, in 1887.

William de Morgan's tile designs were diverse; medieval, figural, scenic, and art nouveau. Collections exist in many museums, including the Victoria and Albert Museum and the William Morris Gallery in London, a substantial and representative collection in Birmingham, and a small but well-chosen collection along with much other pottery at Norwich.