[Victoria Regia : complete bloom]
Creator(s)
Sharp & Son, lithographer.
Contributor(s)
Allen, John Fisk, artist. Sharp, William, 1803-1875, artist. Dutton and Wentworth, publisher.
Title
[Victoria Regia : complete bloom]
Link to library catalog
http://catalog.bostonathenaeum.org/vwebv/holdingsInfo?bibId=420668
Date created
1854 .
Publishing details
Boston : Published by Dutton & Wentworth ; Dorchester : Sharp & Son , Chromolithd. ,
Physical Description
1 print : chromolithograph ; image 38 x 53.4 cm. , sheet 55.9 x 73.6 cm .
Wall Label
One of the first practical uses of chromolithography was the illustration of new scientific findings , particularly in the realm of natural history . Scientists embraced the new medium because of its ability to convey the nuances of color found in the natural world . One botanist noted that the former use of black-and-white imagery had caused “great errors.” William Sharp (1803—1875) , a leader in early Boston chromolithography , was already known for his botanical illustrations when he created six folio prints of the great Amazon water lily , “Victoria Regia,” for a portfolio by botanist John Fiske Allen . The plant had been cultivated by seed first in England and then in Philadelphia and Salem , Massachusetts . The mammoth size of the plant provoked wide-spread interest , and the portfolio received considerable attention in the local newspapers . One journalist praised Sharp’s “beautiful work.. . and the admirable style of the cromoliths [sic] , which , for beauty of coloring exceed any specimens in this style of art we have yet seen... . It may justly be regarded as a work of art.” Modern critics have concurred with this verdict , and today Sharp’s plates for Victoria Regia are universally acknowledged to be masterpieces of color printing .
Summary
Plate 5 in "Victoria Regia " the Great Water Lily of America " by John Fisk Allen , Boston , 1854 . Plate shows the full bloom of the Victoria Regia surrounded by other buds and leaves .
Notes
Exhibited in "Chromo-Mania ! The Art of Chromolithography in Boston , 1840-1910. " held at the Boston Athenaeum , September 28 , 2012 - January 12 , 2013 . Checklist #14 .
Local notes
N.E.H.A.S. , July 1950 . #1950.7 .
Subject
Water lilies--Pictorial works.
Genre terms
Chromolithographs--United States--1850-1860.
Link to Exhibit Page
http://www.bostonathenaeum.org/exhibitions/past-exhibitions/chromo-mania-the-art-of-chromolithography-in-boston-1840-1910
Location/Call number
Prints and Photographs Dept. (Appointment required)
* D JU 1854.d
Source
Victoria Regia plate 5.tif
Rights
Collection of the Boston Athenaeum. May not be reproduced or quoted without written permission. For more information, see http://www.bostonathenaeum.org/node/46
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