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To give people pleasure in the things they must perforce use, that is one great office of decoration; to give people pleasure in the things they must perforce make, that is the other use of it.

— William Morris The Decorative Arts (1877)

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More quotes by William Morris

Wert thou more fickle than the restless sea,
Still should I love thee, knowing thee for such.

Dreamer of dreams, born out of my due time,
Why should I strive to set the crooked straight?

The Earthly Paradise (1868)

If you want a golden rule that will fit everybody, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.

Mastership hath many shifts whereby it striveth to keep itself alive in the world.

A Dream of John Ball (1886)

It is for him that is lonely or in prison to dream of fellowship, but for him that is of a fellowship to do and not to dream.

A Dream of John Ball (1886)

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: William Morris (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.