Explore Artworks

Yellow Butterfly (ca. 1890)

Albert Bierstadt (American, 1830–1902)

A delicate yellow butterfly rests on a leaf, its wings glowing against muted greens. The watercolor’s fine details reveal each vein and subtle gradient, as if the insect might flutter off the page at any moment.
Early Spring—Bluebonnets and Mesquite (1919)

Julian Onderdonk (American, 1882–1922)

A sea of bluebonnets spills across the Texas plains, their violet haze broken by the gnarled forms of mesquite trees. Sunlight filters through thin branches, dappling the wildflowers below. The air hums with the quiet energy of spring—warm earth, new growth, open space stretching beyond the frame.
Ask me no more

Lawrence Alma-Tadema (English, 1836–1912)

A woman turns away, her draped gown catching the light as she lifts a hand in quiet refusal. The marble bench gleams cold beneath her, contrasting the warmth of her averted gaze. Something unspoken lingers in the space between her and the unseen questioner.
A Glance Exchanged

Frederik Hendrik Kaemmerer (Dutch, 1839–1902)

A fleeting look passes between them—charged, unspoken. The woman’s gloved hand hovers near her skirt; the man’s posture stiffens. Silk rustles, light catches a brooch. Something hangs in the air, too delicate to name.
Foreign butterflies occurring in the three continents Asia, Africa and America Pl.319 (1779-1782)

Pieter Cramer (Dutch, 1721–1776)

Vibrant wings from three continents—Asia’s delicate patterns, Africa’s bold hues, America’s striking contrasts—frozen mid-flight. Each engraving traces the fleeting beauty of these distant travelers, a silent dance across borders.
Torquigener glaber (Tas) – Pufferfish.

Frank Edward Clarke (New Zealander, 1864–1935)

The pufferfish hovers mid-water, its spines faintly outlined against the pale wash of ocean light. Every detail—the taut skin, the delicate fins—rendered with clinical precision, yet the creature seems poised to dart or inflate at any moment. A silent tension lingers in the stillness.
1866 [Women’s fashion in nineteenth-century Paris] (1902)

Henri Boutet (French, 1851–1919)

A Parisian woman adjusts her gloves, the intricate lace of her gown catching the light. The folds of her skirt whisper against the cobblestones, a fleeting glimpse of 19th-century elegance frozen in time. Every ruffle and ribbon speaks of an era when fashion was both armor and art.
Her Leisure Hour (ca. 1925)

Irving Ramsay Wiles (American, 1861–1948)

A woman lounges in quiet repose, sunlight draping her form. The folds of her dress pool around her, soft against the chair. A book rests forgotten in her lap—distracted or simply lost in thought. The room hums with unspoken stillness, that rare pause between one moment and the next.
Calypso Island (1897)

Herbert James Draper (English, 1863–1920)

A lone woman stands on jagged rocks, her gown rippling like the restless sea. Waves crash below as she gazes beyond the horizon—neither welcoming nor wary, but utterly untamed. The ocean’s salt hangs in the air, and for a moment, you wonder if she’ll step forward or dissolve into the spray.
Still Life with Flowers (1905)

Odilon Redon (French, 1840–1916)

A cluster of blooms floats against darkness, petals glowing like embers. Their forms blur between real and imagined—soft edges dissolving into shadow. This is no ordinary bouquet; these flowers hum with hidden life, pulsing just beyond sight. Something stirs beneath their delicate surfaces.
Dziecko przed domem (1924)

Tadeusz Makowski (Polish, 1882–1932)

A child stands alone before a house, their small figure dwarfed by angular walls. The scene hums with quiet tension—something unseen lingers in the stark geometry of the building, the way shadows cling to the child’s silhouette. Poland’s muted colors whisper a story half-told.
Butterfly (1890)

Albert Bierstadt (American, 1830–1902)

Delicate wings unfurl in precise watercolor strokes—a butterfly suspended mid-flight, every vein and iridescent scale rendered with scientific clarity. The creature hovers between specimen and living thing, frozen yet weightless.
Lycoperdon enchinatum (1915-1945)

Hans Walty (Swiss, 1868-1948)

Spiny, globular, and strangely delicate—this fungus emerges from the page with precise, almost scientific detail. The engraving’s fine lines trace each bristling protrusion, transforming a humble puffball into something alien yet familiar.
Madame Manet (Suzanne Leenhoff, 1829–1906) at Bellevue (1880)

Édouard Manet (French, 1832–1883)

A woman sits in dappled sunlight, her white dress pooling around her. The parasol rests beside her, forgotten. Shadows play across her face—neither smiling nor solemn, just present. Beyond her, the world blurs into loose brushstrokes, as if reality itself might dissolve at any moment.
Fauna japonica Pl.082 (1833-1850)

Philipp Franz Balthasar von Siebold (German, 1796–1866)

Delicate wings spread across the page, veins traced with scientific precision. A Japanese beetle rendered in ink, its carapace gleaming as if still alive beneath the paper. The specimen seems ready to crawl off the page, frozen mid-motion by an unseen hand.