Study for a Border Design

Charles Sprague Pearce

1894

gouache

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Impressionism Realism Late 19th Century

About this work

This painting shows a simple branch with bright green leaves and clusters of red berries. The background is a light tan paper with a thin orange stripe at the bottom. The lines are bold and the colors are flat, with no shading. The artist used a mix of paint and pencil to create this study. It looks like a practice piece for a larger design, maybe for fabric or wallpaper. If you like this style, look up gouache to see how it works.