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(I have scanned the original 1957 text and photos, below): Miscellany 'Fotexur' foreseen Many readers will be familiar with the well known woven fabric 'Birch' produced by Donald Brothers Ltd. Yet few, like ourselves, may have known that the pattern was derived from a photograph of tree bark taken by William Robertson. This was in 1952, long before the process described as 'Fotexur' in DESIGN for April, had been developed. In the firm's design studio a small section of the original photograph, 1, was enlarged, cut into sections and then arranged to make an attractive repeating pattern. The squared paper used for setting the loom was produced direct from this photographic arrangement. The final birch pattern, 2 was on the market the following year. This evolution of pattern unquestionably takes chronological precedence over the 'Fotexur' process. It was a coincidence that two manufacturers were working along similar lines. The importance of 'Fotexur' can now be seen to rest very largely on the way in which its originator, Tibor Reich, has been able to extend the use of its patterns beyond woven textiles to carpets, pottery, tiles, leathercloth, plastics, floor sheeting, wallpaper, lighting fittings, furniture and sheet glass. In addition, it is clear that Mr Reich's later methods of evolving patterns produced effects of an entirely new and original complexity that show little direct similarity to the original photographs. It is worth noting that a 'Pathe Pictorial' film on 'Fotexur' has recently been released. M.F.