The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 22, 2024

Peacock and Dragon

Peacock and Dragon

1878
designed by
(British, 1834–1896)
Overall: 206.6 x 174.7 cm (81 5/16 x 68 3/4 in.)
Location: not on view

Description

Morris sought to produce textiles that could function as he imagined medieval wall hangings had, bringing warmth to stone-cold rooms. Boldly designed with soothing colors in thick wool, Peacock and Dragon is the closest Morris came to achieving this ideal. In the same year he designed this textile, Morris visited the shop of the London dealer Vincent Robinson, where he saw a room re-created from Damascus, “all vermillion and gold and ultramarine, very beautiful, and is just like going into the Arabian nights.” It partly inspired the exotic motifs seen here. This design was one of the most popular among Morris’s customers; it was available in five colorways.
  • purchased by George Willis Pack, grandfather of Mrs. White, between 1878-1886 for display in his home at 695 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland.
  • Korkow, Cory. "Textiles." IN William Morris: Designing an Earthly Paradise. Cory Korkow and Victoria Hepburn, 8-23. Cleveland, Ohio : Cleveland Museum of Art, 2017. Reproduced and mentioned: p. 16, fig. 10
  • William Morris: Designing an Earthly Paradise. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 24, 2017-January 14, 2019).
    Transitions: 19th and Early 20th Century French and English Textiles. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 3-November 16, 1986).
  • {{cite web|title=Peacock and Dragon |url=false|author=William Morris|year=1878|access-date=22 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1953.330