Peigne Original Watercolor of Narcissus Poeticus

PEIGNE, Madame (French, 1760-1820).
Narcissus poeticus.
Gouache on toned paper.
Signed and dated l.l.: Madame Peigne pinxit 1807.
Inscribed on mount: Narcissus Poeticus/ Narcisse des Poeter
20 3/8" x 15 1/8" sheet, 31 3/4" x 26 1/2" framed.

Madame Peigne was a student of two of France's greatest eighteenth-century natural history painters - Jean-Baptiste Simeon Chardin (1699-1779) and Gerard van Spaendonck (1746-1822). In 1799, her work was shown at the Paris Salon.

In this beautiful painting, Madame Peigne celebrates the simplicity and beauty of the narcissus. The four different flower heads show the bloom from every angle allowing the viewer to fully appreciate their delicacy. The nuanced tones of the variously green leaves are complemented by the toned color of the paper, while the texture of the petals is skillfully evoked. The artist's honest depiction is both of aesthetic appeal as well as scientific value.

Narcissus Poeticus is a flower often identified as the narcissus of ancient times and associated with the Greek legend of Narcissus. Otherwise known as "pheasant's-eye daffodil" or "poet's narcissus," this flower was also one of the first daffodils to be cultivated. Strongly fragrant, with a ring of petals in snow white and a short corona of faint yellow with a distinct reddish edge, the narcissus grows from 8 to 16 inches tall and is widely found in North America.