Figure design 1882, background design 1898, made 1906
Artist:
After designs by Sir Edward Burne-Jones (English, 1833–1898) and John Henry Dearle (English, 1860–1932) Produced by Morris & Co., London (English, 1875-1940) Woven by Walter Taylor (English, 1875–1965) and John Keich (English, active 1890s–1910) Merton Abbey Tapestry Works, London (English, 1881–1940)
About this artwork
William Morris called tapestry weaving “the noblest of the weaving arts …in which nothing is mechanical.” The weaver’s skill in interpreting a complex and often delicate design was essential to creating a successful work. Tapestry weaving is slow and therefore expensive, which made such textiles inaccessible to most consumers.
The hanging of Pomona, the goddess of orchards and gardens, was paired with another tapestry depicting Flora, the goddess of flowering plants. The first version of this pair was woven in the mid-1880s with a bold background of large leaves designed by William Morris. Smaller versions were later produced with the millefleurs design in the background by John Henry Dearle. The floral background resulted in a more harmonious composition, as Dearle’s smaller flowers were better suited to the delicate rendering of the goddesses.
Cotton, wool, and silk, slit and double interlocking tapestry weave
Inscriptions
POMONA
Dimensions
92.9 × 165.1 cm (36 1/2 × 65 in.)
Credit Line
Ida E. S. Noyes Fund
Reference Number
1919.792
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Christa Charlotte Mayer, Masterpieces of Western Textiles from The Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1969), 33, plate 17.
Christa M. Thurman, “Tapestry: The Purposes, Form, and Function of the Medium from its Inception until Today,” in Acts of the Tapestry Symposium, November 1976 (Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1978), 17, fig. 17.
Linda Parry, William Morris Textiles (New York: The Viking Press, 1983), 107-9, 112.
Christa C Mayer-Thurman, The Department of Textiles at The Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1989) 100-1, 103, 147.
The Art Institute of Chicago, The Essential Guide (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1993), 237.
Koenraad Brosens, “Pomona from Flora and Pomona,” in Koenraad Brosens, ed., Christa C. Mayer Thurman, gen. ed., European Tapestries in the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat., [exhibition: The Divine Art: Four Centuries of European Tapestries in the Art Institute of Chicago] (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2008) 352-355, cat. 59.
Judith Barter, ed., Apostles of Beauty: Arts and Crafts from Britain to Chicago, exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2009) 21, 13.
Art Institute of Chicago, Masterpieces of Western Textiles, Jan. 25–Mar. 2, 1969.
Art Institute of Chicago, Tapestries from the Permanent Collection, June 30–Sept. 30, 1979.
Art Institute of Chicago, Agnes Allerton Gallery, A Selection of Fabrics from the 1880s-1940s from the Permanent Collection, Nov. 13, 1982–Feb. 15, 1983.
Art Institute of Chicago, Elizabeth F. Cheney and Agnes Allerton Textile Galleries, European Textile Masterpieces from Coptic Times through the 19th Century, Sept. 27, 1989–Jan. 22, 1990.
Art Institute of Chicago, Regenstein Hall, The Divine Art: Four Centuries of European Tapestry, Nov. 1, 2008–Jan. 4, 2009.
Art Institute of Chicago, Morris and Company: The Business of Beauty, Dec. 18, 2021–June 13, 2022, no cat.
Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy (1877–1947), London, from 1906 [purchased at Merton Abbey Tapestry Works, London, according to Thurman in Brosens, 2008, pp. 352-355; Day Book 9, p. 82 received at AIC on Dec. 12, 1917]; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1919.
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