Castor Bean
1818
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1818
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Dominant colour
Castor Bean is a 1818 paint by Unknown, a Romanticism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
A single castor bean plant fills the page. Its glossy leaves and spiky seed pods stand out against plain white paper. The artist used watercolors to show every vein and texture. This wasn’t painted just for looks. British travelers brought back tropical plants and paintings in the 1800s. Artists like this one copied them carefully for science and home decor. Look for the same careful detail at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
The artwork depicts a castor bean plant with a tall branch bearing several hanging pods at the top. Four large, five-pointed leaves in varying shades of green are shown, with the lower two leaves displaying browning at the edges. The drawing is executed on high-quality English 'Whatman' paper, which was commonly imported for such botanical works during the period.
Read the full account in the museum source.
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