Snapdragons

Pupil of Gérard van Spaendonck, Pancrace Bessa was one of the leading painters of flowers and fruit in France in the first half of the 19th century. An illustrator of publications, he collaborated regularly with Pierre‑Joseph Redouté, under whom he trained. In 1816, he undertook his most important commission, a series of 572 watercolours for the Herbier général de l’amateur by Mordant de Launay, commissioned by King Louis XVIII, which he completed in 1827. He worked also for the Duchess of Berry and the Empress Joséphine.

The present sheet belongs to the artist’s body of botanical studies, characterized by a careful observation of nature and a refined execution in watercolour. It may be compared to other studies, coming directly from the workshop of the artist and sold at Christie’s Paris, 16 November 2008, such as a Flowering horse chestnut branch (lot 453).