Description
The artist and scientist Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) was born in Frankfurt, Germany, into a middle-class family of publishers and artists. With her meticulous depictions of insect metamorphosis, she raised the standards of natural history illustration and helped give birth to the field of entomology. At the age of fifty-two, Merian traveled with her younger daughter to Suriname, a Dutch territory in South America, to paint its exotic flora and fauna.
Many of the drawings produced by Merian in the South American jungle were later published as hand-colored engravings in her book Metamorphosis of the Insects of Suriname (1705), which brought her widespread fame. A copy of the second edition is held in the collections of the Research Library at the Getty Research Institute.
Insects and Flowers, a delightful gift book that reproduces vivid color details of sixteen plates from the Getty's copy, is a vibrant encapsulation of Merian's book and features an engaging essay on Merian's life and work as well as an insect and plant identification guide. An exhibition of Merian's work will be on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum from June 10 through August 31, 2008.
Author: David Brafman, Stephanie Schrader
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 09/01/2008
Pages: 52
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.20lbs
Size: 6.10h x 4.60w x 0.20d
ISBN13: 9780892369294
ISBN10: 0892369299
BISAC Categories:
- Art | Subjects & Themes | Plants & Animals
- Art | Individual Artists | General
- Art | Techniques | Watercolor Painting
Many of the drawings produced by Merian in the South American jungle were later published as hand-colored engravings in her book Metamorphosis of the Insects of Suriname (1705), which brought her widespread fame. A copy of the second edition is held in the collections of the Research Library at the Getty Research Institute.
Insects and Flowers, a delightful gift book that reproduces vivid color details of sixteen plates from the Getty's copy, is a vibrant encapsulation of Merian's book and features an engaging essay on Merian's life and work as well as an insect and plant identification guide. An exhibition of Merian's work will be on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum from June 10 through August 31, 2008.
Author: David Brafman, Stephanie Schrader
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 09/01/2008
Pages: 52
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.20lbs
Size: 6.10h x 4.60w x 0.20d
ISBN13: 9780892369294
ISBN10: 0892369299
BISAC Categories:
- Art | Subjects & Themes | Plants & Animals
- Art | Individual Artists | General
- Art | Techniques | Watercolor Painting
About the Author
David Brafman is curator of rare books at the Getty Research Institute. Stephanie Schrader is assistant curator of drawings at the J. Paul Getty Museum.