Despair over the alienation of work conditions after the Industrial Revolution led to an interest in the fusion of art and craft and the revival of the artisans' guild. It began with the writings of Pugin and Ruskin and ran from the Reformed Gothic through the Aesthetic Movement and on to the work of the Arts and Crafts societies. In England, houses identified with Arts and Crafts ideals were inspired by the Gothic, recalled medieval ornament, and relied on not-inexpensive handwork in various disciplines. Charles Rennie Mackintosh, influenced by Art Nouveau, and CFA Voysey, whose work falls between fairy tale and modern, are part of this panoply of talent.

THE VICTORIAN Aesthetic Movement grew out of a revival of medievalism and Gothic ornament commingled with a fascination for exotic influences including Moorish, Persian, and Japanese. Walter Crane's 1875 dado paper 'Swan, Rush, and Iris' epitomizes the colorful, stylized designs of the period. courtesy v&a picture library, victoria and albert museum

WILLIAM DE MORGAN contributed tile designs to Morris & Co. [1861-1940]. After 1874 he concentrated on fantastical, intensely colored 'Persian' lustre ware, his revival of 15th- and 16th-century Islamic Isnik ware.

THE UNDISPUTED FATHER of the Arts and Crafts Movement was William Morris. Designer, poet and publisher, craftsman, and social reformer, he campaigned for preservation, wrote on the value of work, and formed a company that sold beautiful works in the applied arts. courtesy the society of antiquaries of london

The American Arts and Crafts Movement came just after the Victorian period and encompassed Stickley's fumed-oak Mission furniture and his artistic Craftsman homes, the bungalow phenomenon, regional building materials, and proto-Modern architecture such as that of Chicago's Prairie School architects. While many crafts were involved here, including an explosion in metalwork and ceramics, the American version of A&C was simpler than the European movements, emphasizing wood tones and earthy materials and colors. It was also more egalitarian as it embraced machine production of many goods.

BUNGALOWS-homey with embracing eaves and porches, loosely based on Anglo-Indian colonial architecture-were built by the hundreds of thousands, from architect-designed through planbook and kit housing, with changing influences from Craftsman to neo-Colonial ca.1900 to 1930.

GREENE AND GREENE designed 'ultimate Bungalows' like the 1907 Blacker house in Pasadena. An artful fusion of California style with Japanese woodworking and design, they were built for wealthy patrons but admired across the spectrum. photo by alexander vertikoff from greene & greene masterworks, ©1998 chronicle books.

PRAIRIE SCHOOL architecture was the Midwest's contribution to the movement away from Victorian excess and low taste. The 1902 Dana-Thomas house in Springfield, Ill., by Frank Lloyd Wright, was new architecture in a modern vernacular, its open-plan interior a symphony in wood. Such Prairie School works were heralded in The Craftsman and other publications of the time. photo by alex mcclean

GUSTAV STICKLEY was the most influential promulgator of Arts and Crafts philosophy and design in America, affecting taste not only through his furniture workshops and persuasive catalogs, but also because of his highly influential magazine The Craftsman (pub. 1901-1916).

A scholarly rumble of interest began during the 1960s, but collecting geared up after Princeton University's 1972 exhibition and catalog entitled 'American Arts & Crafts: 1876-1916.' The artist-craftsman is celebrated today after decades during which handicraft was devalued. Nevertheless, the 'revival' may be seen more as a continuance by future historians (but for the minor interruption of two World Wars and the short-lived, much reviled Modern Movement). Today art and craft are married in so many disciplines: architecture, interior design, pottery and tile, hardware and lighting, furniture, textiles, and even 'fine art.' Increasingly, artisans produce (and their clients demand) new work that interprets the vocabulary and philosophy of the art movements of a century ago.

LIKE THE ORIGINALS, various influences and media can be seen in A&C pieces. This 1995 washstand by Kevin Rodel recalls a 1904 piece by Scots designer C.R. Mackintosh. American and European influences are sometimes combined by Revival artisans. photo by dennis griggs

ART POTTERY has never been more appreciated. Ephraim Faience, which relies on familiar naturalistic (and often Japanesque) motifs like dragonflies, gingko leaves, and water lilies, reports that new designs by their artisans sell better than strict reproductions.

ART GLASS is only one medium taken up by today's artisans. Lundberg Studios, founded in 1970, does new work reminiscent of Tiffany's Art Nouveau glass as well as Deco and contemporary designs. Going strong now: metalwork, ceramics, textiles, furniture, and the decorative arts.

IN TEXTILES, hindsight makes possible an eclectic offering recalling designers such as Morris and Wright as well as rediscovered geniuses like Voysey and forgotten Americans including Candace Wheeler. These fine woven fabrics in true period colors are from Archive Editions.

THE REVIVAL (or is it survival?) is symbolized by the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N.C. The hotel and spa was built in 1913 and furnished by the Roycroft shops; it hosted its first Arts and Crafts Conference in 1988, which in year 18 is hotter than ever.

A FUSION of English, Scots, Craftsman, Prairie, Hispanic, and/or Asian influences describes furniture of the Revival; the range is broader (better, some say) than that of the original movement. This is Thos. Moser's freestanding version of a Japanese-influenced Bungalow-era built-in, in American cherry.

FAMOUS ONCE AGAIN are such designers as CFA Voysey [1857-1941], the English architect who designed everything from buildings and furniture to wallpaper and silverware. The chair by David Berman of Trustworth Studios is after a 1902 original; J.R. Burrows has issued Voysey's 'Bird and Poppy' in cotton-linen union. photo by carl tremblay