A Selection of Hexandrian Plants, belonging to the natural order of Amaryllidae and Liliacae: Tiger Lily

1832

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Dominant colour

A Selection of Hexandrian Plants, belonging to the natural order of Amaryllidae and Liliacae: Tiger Lily is a 1832 by Robert Havell, a Romanticism work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Robert Havell
When & what style?: 1832 · Romanticism
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

This painting shows a single tiger lily in sharp focus. The petals glow against a dark background, each fold of the flower captured in crisp detail. Tiny watercolor touches add extra depth to the reds and greens. Back then, artists used a tricky method. They printed color images in layers—one plate for blue, one for yellow, one for red, and one for black. Each print got hand-painted after to make it pop. Try looking up Robert Havell (British, 1769–1832) next.

The story of this work

Overview

The late 18th century saw the development of color printing, a laborious process in which the image is built up from separate plates for each color. Applying Newton’s theory of color, a plate was prepared for each of the three primary colors (blue, yellow, and red) as well as for a darker color (usually black, to provide a unifying background tone). These plates, too, were often embellished with hand work in watercolor

Read the full account in the museum source.

About the artist

Artist

Robert Havell

The Havell family of Reading, Berkshire, England, included a number of notable engravers, etchers and painters, as well as writers, publishers, educators, and musicians.

See the richer artist page