Kelmscott Press edition of 'Love is Enough'

Inspired by medieval morality plays, ‘Love is Enough’ is a dramatic poem that tells the story of King Pharamond who gives up his kingdom for the pursuit of love. It is based on medieval Celtic and Welsh tales drawn from compilations such as ‘The Mabinogion’. The play features three sets of lovers: an emperor and empress; King Pharamond and Azalais; and the peasants Joan and Giles. However, Pharamond and Azalais are actually characters of a play within the play, performed during the wedding ceremony of the emperor and empress. As they dance and interact with the audience, the couples become more fluid and the barriers of monogamy are disrupted.

The interrelated couples in ‘Love is Enough’ mirror Morris’s own relationships whilst he was writing the play during the early 1870s. At the time Morris was leasing Kelmscott Manor in the Cotswolds with Jane, his wife, their two daughters and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Morris’s mentor and collaborator. Rossetti and Jane had developed a close emotional relationship which left Morris feeling betrayed. In turn, he developed a close connection with Georgiana Burne-Jones, whose husband, Edward Burne-Jones had been having an affair with Maria Zambaco, a sculptor and model.

‘Love is Enough’ was not as successful as ‘The Earthly Paradise’ or ‘The Life and Death of Jason’ but found an audience after Morris’s death and was performed on stage in 1920 at the Ethical Church in Bayswater, Westminster. This Kelmscott Press edition of the poem includes two full-page woodcut illustrations by Edward Burne-Jones and is one of 300 copies printed on hand-made paper. An additional 8 copies were printed on vellum.