He viewed with desperation the speed with which Britain was becoming vulgarised and uglified. Morris saw how human beings depended on nature, noting the effect of the broad sweep and intimate detail of the landscape in lifting the spirits and contributing to psychological equilibrium. The most emotional passages in News from Nowhere are those about the natural beauty of the Earth. Design extravagance? No, the ultimate example of Morris's conviction that perfectionism of design and craftsmanship should be available to everyone. One of the star exhibits in the arts and crafts section of Anarchy & Beauty is Morris's own copy of the French edition of Karl Marx's Das Kapital handbound by TJ Cobden-Sanderson in a gold-tooled leather binding. Morris had invented a new species in society, the gentleman – and lady – artisan. Often perilous experimental social mixes were a feature of the Morris-inspired arts and crafts communities as they developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Cotswolds being the favoured destination. He fulminated that real art could not exist while people were divided into 'cultivated and uncultivated classes'. He burned with guilt at the fact that his 'good fortune only' allowed him to live in beautiful surroundings and to pursue the work he adored. What drove him into revolutionary activism was his anger and shame at the injustices within society. How can we combat all this luxury and waste? He has been the constant niggle in the conscience. Morris has exerted a powerful influence on thinking about art and design over the past century. All of them have had to pass a News from Nowhere test. The Anarchy & Beauty exhibition I have been curating for the National Portrait Gallery has given me the chance to assemble a cast of nearly 70 craftsmen and craftswomen, architects, designers, visual idealists and leftwing politicians, all of whom were touched by Morris's visionary thinking. Since I wrote Morris's biography, published 20 years ago, the chronological details of his life have come to seem less significant than the continuing spread of his ideas. Photograph: Historical Picture Archive/Corbis

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