Of Elephants and Roses

November 3, 2011

American Philosophical Society

Josephine’s March Lily

1802-1805

Watercolor on Vellum

P.J. Redoute

Of Elephants and Roses

Excerpt from The Lilies 7^th edition (1813)

Josephine's March Lily
http://www.apsmuseum.org/elephants-and-roses

This large watercolor painting of an Amaryllis flower is part of the “Of Elephants and Roses” exhibit at the American Philosophical Society (APS) museum.  The detail and skill apparent in the work lends it to be appreciated by people who enjoy rare flowers and watercolors.  As part of the section focusing on rare flowers, this painting represents the power Josephine Bonaparte possessed, and her skill at recognizing the value of flowers and animals.  She hired Redoute, an expert at painting flowers, to paint the flora within her Malmaison Estate.  As part of a compilation of Lily studies, the “March Lily” reveals Josephine’s interest in the science and educational opportunities of her objects.

This painting made its way to Philadelphia as part of the first exhibit that APS has put on with loaned materials.  It comes from France and is part of the French natural sciences portion of the current exhibit.  Within its space are other paintings of flowers from Josephine’s collection, highlighting its variety and uniqueness.  Directly next to it is a large drawing of an Amaryllis bulb worth 100 gold pieces.   It creates an interesting juxtaposition between the bulb and the flower in full bloom.  The label that accompanies the painting informs the viewer of the narrative of the flower behind the painting.  It describes how the flower travelled from South Africa to Holland in 1789 and eventually found its way to the Malmaison Estate outside of Paris.   

This painting could be compared to Dutch still life paintings of flowers.  While these are typically bouquets of a wide variety of flower species, the detail used to make each individual flower recognizable is similar.  The French painting however, has a stronger connection to the study of botany than does its Dutch counterparts, engaging scientists as well as artists in the work.  However, this could also deter people only interested in art from appreciating the value of the flower study for it’s scientific purposes. 

An opposing narrative about this object could detail the injustices around taking rare flowers from their native countries.  The colonization efforts of Europe were detrimental to many civilizations.  The transport of this flower outside of South Africa is a story that parallels the lives of many people during that time, and represents how those wrongdoings      were overlooked.