Study of Flower Boughs for Woven Textile

A pale sheet shows sprays of stylized flowers and foliage painted in purple, blue, green and lilac over faint chalk lines. A dense purple bloom sits at upper left, while pale blue pendant blossoms and bead-like buds trail diagonally down the right side, arranged as a textile repeat.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1780

Medium

Black and red chalk, colored gouache on paper

Source

Smithsonian (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum)

Size

2864 × 4000 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): Smithsonian Institution, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum