Magnolias on Light Blue Velvet Cloth

About this artwork

This sensuous and decorative image dates from the later part of Martin Johnson Heade’s long, varied, and peripatetic career. Traveling through much of the United States, to England and continental Europe, and (three different times) to Brazil, he produced work ranging from pristine views of East Coast salt marshes and lush tropical landscapes to pictures of exotic hummingbirds and orchids. At the age of sixty-four, Heade settled in Saint Augustine, Florida. There he began painting detailed arran...