Tablecloth or Bedcover probably titled "Ragged Poppy" 1902

John Scarratt Rigby's tablecloth or bedcover, probably titled "Ragged Poppy," features a pinkish-red floral pattern that repeats across its surface and along its borders. It makes me think about how a design emerges, shifting and solidifying through trial, error, and intuition. I wonder what Rigby was thinking when he made it. The design work involved in creating such an expansive pattern is pretty intense. It is so beautiful and delicate but has a repetitive warp of over 40 inches. I can imagine him poring over the composition. He would have had to consider every detail, from the curves of the leaves to the placement of the poppies themselves. There is something pleasing about how textiles communicate feeling, intention, or meaning. Artists inspire one another’s creativity across time, participating in an ongoing conversation and exchange of ideas. A textile, like a painting, becomes a form of embodied expression that embraces ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations.