Bouquet of Roses, Larkspur and Convolvulus
mid to late 18th century
Medium
Pastel manner
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 10 11/16 in. × 8 in. (27.2 × 20.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Charles K. Wilkinson, 1948
Accession Number
48.100.3
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
Louis Marin Bonnet’s “Bouquet of Roses, Larkspur and Convolvulus” captures the refined elegance of eighteenth-century French decorative taste. Created in the pastel manner—a specialized printmaking technique that employs multiple color plates and subtle tonal gradations to imitate the soft, velvety appearance of chalk drawings—this work exemplifies how printmakers sought to bring the luminous effects of pastel into reproducible form. Bonnet, active in Paris during the Rococo period, helped popularize the method, allowing floral compositions once reserved for wealthy collectors to reach wider audiences. The sheet presents a gracefully arranged bouquet in a simple vase, its roses, larkspur, and convolvulus rendered with delicate color transitions and fine botanical detail. Such floral still lifes were immensely popular in mid- to late-eighteenth-century France, reflecting Enlightenment-era interest in natural history as well as the period’s love of ornamental motifs for domestic interiors. Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1948 as a gift from Charles K. Wilkinson, the print remains a charming testament to the technical ingenuity and aesthetic charm of Rococo printmaking.
About the Artist
Louis Marin Bonnet · 1736–1793
Comment on works: Copper engraver