Henry Moore Artwork Catalogue
Seated Figures and Caterpillars
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Seated Figures and Caterpillars
Datec.1946
Artwork TypeTextile Summary
Catalogue NumberTEX 17
Mediaserigraphy
Papercotton
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This design is one of few Moore textiles predominantly printed in cotton. The British cotton industry was disastrously affected by both World Wars. During the First, a ban on foreign export led to Japan developing its own competitive cotton industry, and during the Second, the British industry was deliberately scaled down in an effort to organise the home front. Rationing of clothing began in 1941, and was compounded by Utility regulations strictly imposed in 1943 which further limited apparel and were not withdrawn until 1952. Lack of modern textile machinery such as ring spindles and automated looms meant that by 1959 the British cotton industry’s input into the world market, which at one time had been nearly one third, was reduced to just 5 per cent.