Blue Violet Pansy Botanical Painting Van Gogh Deep indigo and teal waves

Deep indigo and teal waves churn in the foreground

It suits a hallway with cool slate-grey walls

knowing stillness

its grassy flanks falling away in sculpted folds toward the valley

capturing one of the wild's most powerful animals in a rare moment of peace

Blue Violet Pansy Botanical Painting Van Gogh Deep indigo and teal wavesA single blue violet pansy stands at the heart of this botanical portrait, its broad upper petals ruffled like silk and its lower petals fanning out around a small golden yellow eye. Painted with a naturalist's patience, the flower rises on a slender green stem above a rosette of softly veined leaves, the whole study set against a near black ground that throws every contour into relief. Subtle violet shading travels from the pale, almost luminous