Two pink thistle plants
About the work
Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale.
Beatrix Potter made many studies of flowers and plants and was keenly interested in natural history. On this sheet she has made two studies of pink thistle plants in watercolour over pencil. Her carefully observed plant and flower studies would have an impact on her book illustration; she later commented that the ‘careful botanical studies of my youth’ informed the reality of her imagined scenes.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Particulars
- Accession number
- BP.364
