This print was designed by the British artist Henry Moore (1898-1986) for the textile firm Ascher Limited in 1948. Along with other British and European artists, Moore was asked by Ascher to design prints for dress fabrics in order to create more exicting textiles than those available during the Second World War. Moore's patterns were actually linear images taken from his sketchbooks. Ascher Limited was founded by Zika and Lida Ascher, from the Czech Republic, in 1942. Along with Alastair Morton of Edinburgh Weavers, Ascher began the practice of working with artists in 1944 to produce innovative textile designs. Dress fabrics from Ascher were very popular with French, British and Italian couturiers in the 1940s, including Christain Dior and Elsa Schiaperelli.