Perroquet Rouge thumbnail 1
Perroquet Rouge thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Perroquet Rouge

Watercolour
ca. 1744 (painted)
Artist/Maker
Ehret, Georg Dionysus (artist)
Place of origin
England (painted)

This was one of the 44 illustrations Ehret contributed to Hortus Nitidissimus (1750-92), a publication devoted to garden plants by the German physician and botanist Dr Christoph Jakob Trew (1695-1769) of Nuremburg. This was essentially a florilegium celebrating the beauties of flowering plants, and without any higher scientific purpose, as the subtitle asserts: 'The flower-garden in finest bloom throughout the year, or pictures of the most beautiful flowers.' This would explain the peculiarly exaggerated decorative character of the portrait, with its stylized rococo sinuosity.


Object details

Categories
Paintings
Gardens & Gardening
SCRAN
Object type
Watercolour
Titles
  • Perroquet Rouge (assigned by artist)
  • Parrot Tulip (popular title)
Materials and techniques
Watercolour and bodycolour on vellum
Watercolour
Bodycolour
Brief description
Parrot Tulip (Tulipa gesneriana) or Perroquet rouge by George Dionysius Ehret (1708-70); watercolour and bodycolour on vellum; 1744; England
Physical description
Peroquet Rouge; Parrot Tulip by George Dionysius Ehret; watercolour and bodycolour on vellum
Dimensions
  • Height: 525mm
  • Width: 370mm
Marks and inscriptions
  • Perroquet rouge (Written in ink)
  • G.G. Ehret pinxit. 1744 (Written in ink in bottom righthand corner)
Gallery label
Georg Dionysius Ehret 1708-70 Parrot Tulip (Tulipa gesneriana) 1744 Ehret began life as a gardener, drawing plants in his spare time. This was one of the 44 illustrations he contributed to 'Hortus nitidissimus', a work by his Nuremberg patron Dr Christoph Jacob Trew. As a florilegium, the book celebrated the beauties of flowering plants, without any higher scientific purpose, which may explain the exaggerated decorative quality of the portrait. England Watercolour and bodycolour on vellum V&A: D.582-1886
Subjects depicted
Tulip
Flower
Summary
This was one of the 44 illustrations Ehret contributed to Hortus Nitidissimus (1750-92), a publication devoted to garden plants by the German physician and botanist Dr Christoph Jakob Trew (1695-1769) of Nuremburg. This was essentially a florilegium celebrating the beauties of flowering plants, and without any higher scientific purpose, as the subtitle asserts: 'The flower-garden in finest bloom throughout the year, or pictures of the most beautiful flowers.' This would explain the peculiarly exaggerated decorative character of the portrait, with its stylized rococo sinuosity.
Bibliographic references
  • 'Picturing Plants: an analytical history of botanical illustration' by Gill Saunders; 1995; Zwemmer in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum; no.39, page 59
  • 'Picturing Plants: an analytical history of botanical illustration' by Gill Saunders; 2009; KWS Publishers in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum; no.39, page 59
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
D.582-1886

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Record createdFebruary 14, 2003
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O74389/perroquet-rouge-watercolour-ehret-georg-dionysus/
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