Barron & Larcher Textile Designers

During the 1920s and 1930s, Phyllis Barron (1890-1964) and Dorothy Larcher (1882-1952) were at the forefront of a revival in hand block-printing in Britain. As designer-makers they formed a unique partnership, producing innovative textiles and seeing the entire process through from beginning to end. Using whatever materials they could muster - fabric ranging from balloon cotton to prison sheets and velvet, and everyday items such as combs and car mats for printing - and pushing the boundaries of what could be achieved with predominantly natural dyes, these two remarkable women ran a successful business that lasted from 1923 until the outbreak of World War II.