Erica Fulgida 1813

Curator: Ah, what a serene beauty! It almost whispers of old gardens and secret languages. Editor: Indeed! And what’s catching my eye first is this striking combination of a pastel color palette, this muted green contrasting with such a vibrant, almost aggressively bright pink. Curator: We’re looking at a watercolor drawing titled “Erica Fulgida” created around 1813 by Pierre Joseph Redouté. It’s a splendid example of botanical illustration from the Romantic era. Editor: The Romantic Era! You can tell. It is something almost fairytale-like in this flower. Though it’s rendered with a scientific precision, it feels… idealized, doesn’t it? It’s as if the flower is posing for its portrait, offering itself to our gaze with the upmost dignity. Curator: I agree wholeheartedly! I love how Redouté blends the scientific accuracy with an undeniable artistry. If you observe, especially in the detail of leaves and petals, it's almost like the painting isn't only representing this Erica Fulgida flower, it captures its soul, somehow... Editor: You know, the "soul" you are referring to feels really tangible here. The meticulous lines making the botanical reality visible, but at the same time, there is a certain degree of emotional transparency too. As if the illustration offers us access to hidden qualities of life, to our very own personal secret garden! Curator: Redouté’s flowers were all the rage during the Napoleonic era! Aristocrats would use such drawings not only as decor but to signify something – secret codes among friends using the hidden languages of flora… Editor: And doesn't this capture exactly the long lost "Romantic" world we now perceive only through sentimental and beautiful idealized lenses? How remarkable that flowers, today as then, manage to connect us so deeply with hidden emotions, longings and affections! Curator: In this digital era, sometimes, I find myself yearning for such modes of communication again. It's a very interesting work to meditate upon and what better place than here in the Metropolitan Museum of Art! Editor: A beautiful invitation indeed, to find personal meanings again among forms and colors, just as they did during the Romantic era!