Brer Rabbit (or Brother Rabbit)
Design before 1881, made 1917–40
Designed by William Morris (English, 1834–1896) Produced by Morris & Co., London (English, 1875–1940) Merton Abbey, London (English, 1881–1940)
Morris & Co. produced this two-color design using a simple, age-old technique: the white pattern of rabbits and birds nestled among acorns and oak leaves was block printed with a substance that would resist the dye. When the fabric was immersed in a dye bath (seen here in red), the background—all of the unprinted fabric—absorbed the color to reveal the pattern in white.
Block printing using either a color or a substance that resists color (or a combination of the two techniques) was the standard method for all of Morris & Co.’s cotton fabrics.
Madder vat dyed and block printed cotton