Morris, Talwin 1865 - 1911

Talwin Morris was born in Winchester, Hampshire, England on 14 June 1865 and was articled to his uncle, Joseph Morris (1836-1913) at his practice, Morris & Smallwood, in Reading, Berkshire from 1882 to 1885.  The practice specialised in church architecture.  Following the completion of his articles, he moved to London where, in 1885, he began working as an assistant to James Martin Brooks (1859-1903).  Although during his time with broioks, he produced numerous architectural drawings, there is no evidence that he practised as an architect.

He left Brooks' office in 1890 and the following year was appointed sub-art editor for the magazine 'Black and White', published by Cassell, for which he designed a number of the decorative initials and headpieces. He also designed the masthead for Cassell's Saturday Journal in 1892.  In May 1893 he moved to Glasgow to take up the post of art director at Blackie & Son.  He subsequently remained with the company until 1909 when he  was forced to retire because of ill-health. His output for Blackie was prolific, nevertheless he still found time to work on numerous freelance commissions. These included a new masthead for The Magazine of Art published by Cassell, and a cover for the German art magazine Dekorative Kunst in 1906.  He also designed books for Morison Brothers of Glasgow,  Mudie's Select Library, the German publishers J. G. Cotta of Stuttgart, J. C. C. Bruns of Minden, F. Volckmar of Leipzig, and, from 1898, Blackie's subsidiary Gresham.

Soon after his arrival in Glasgow, Morris made friends with a number of the artists and designers associated with Glasgow School of Art including 'The Four' - Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Herbert MacNair, Margaret Macdonald, and Frances Macdonald. They were to have a profound influence on his subsequent work as a designer and before long he began to incorporate Glasgow Style motifs into his designs particularly his book designs.

In addition to his work as a book designer, Morris also designed textiles, art metalwork, jewellery and furniture.  His wife Alice Talwin Morris, (1861-1955) née Ellen Grace Marsh, was a successful illustrator of children's books and sometimes collaborated with her husband.   Talwin Morris died in Torwood, Bowling, Scotland on 29 March 1911

The British Architectural Library at the Royal Institute of British Architects in London has a file on Talwin Morris.