Arcadópolis
Roses
Louisa Anne Meredith, 1836
What you see
A rose branch rises from the bottom and splits in two. Above, two loosely petalled roses open: one higher and to the left, the other a little lower and facing us. Around them are buds still wrapped in green, one with a pink tip, and toothed leaves that fan outward. The eye climbs the stem to the yellow centers.
The pink shifts in tone, deep and almost fuchsia in the shadows, fading nearly to white where the light hits. The stamens are tiny yellow and orange dots. The leaves mix dark and light greens with fine veins. Notice the bud on the right just starting to open, and the green sepals hugging the buds on the left.
About Louisa Anne Meredith
Louisa Anne Meredith was born in Birmingham and, before she married, had already published in England, under her maiden name, Twamley, books of poems and flowers illustrated by herself. In 1839 she married and emigrated to Australia, and from 1840 she lived in Tasmania. A writer, naturalist and illustrator, she painted the flowers, birds and insects of the Tasmanian bush in great detail, and published her plates in books such as “Some of My Bush Friends in Tasmania”. She was also a member of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
More by Louisa Anne Meredith
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