Iris curtopetala
1802/1816
Medium
watercolor and graphite on vellum
Dimensions
framed: 64.77 × 76.84 cm (25 1/2 × 30 1/4 in.) sheet: 48 × 34.9 cm (18 7/8 × 13 3/4 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Roger and Barbara Ditman
Accession Number
2023.134.5
Art Historical Context
Pierre Joseph Redouté, often celebrated as the “Raphael of flowers,” created this delicate botanical study of *Iris curtopetala* between 1802 and 1816. A Belgian painter who served as flower painter to both Marie-Antoinette and Empress Joséphine, Redouté produced thousands of precise plant portraits that bridged scientific documentation and fine art during the Napoleonic era. His work helped popularize the study of exotic flora among European courts and scholars at a time when global exploration was rapidly expanding botanical knowledge. Executed in watercolor and graphite on vellum, the draw...
About the Artist
Pierre Joseph Redouté · 1759–1840
Comment on works: Flowers