Strawberry Thief Possibly 1883 - 1917

William Morris designed this textile, Strawberry Thief, using an indigo-discharge technique. This labor-intensive process involves dyeing the fabric a deep indigo blue, and then using a bleaching agent to remove the dye in certain areas, creating the intricate repeating pattern. The deep blues and carefully placed lighter areas give the fabric a rich, almost three-dimensional quality. Morris was deeply invested in reviving traditional craft techniques like this one, which stood in stark contrast to the mass-produced textiles of the Industrial Revolution. Strawberry Thief reflects Morris’s socialist ideals. By returning to hand-crafted methods, he hoped to elevate the status of the worker and create beautiful, meaningful objects for everyday life. The natural motifs, like the birds and strawberries, evoke a sense of pre-industrial harmony, a world where labor was more closely connected to nature and less alienated by the demands of capital. By examining the materials, making, and social context, we can appreciate Morris's textile as both a beautiful object and a statement about labor, politics, and consumption.