Women of Flowers
The National Library of Australia has a wonderful cache of Australian wildflower art produced by prolific women artists of colonial and post colonial Australia. Women of Flowers: Botanical Art in Australia from the 1830s – 1960s showcases artists whose meticulous and beautiful works contribute just as significantly to botany as they do to early Australian art. Leonie Norton examines the role of these women artists in Australia’s botanical history, giving insight into the lives and persons of these quietly creative documenters. From the famous waratah to the rare Caladenia pulcherrima (Eastern Mantis Orchid), Women of Flowers is a feast for the eyes, bringing to life the vibrancy and intricacy of Australia’s native flora.

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Sample images
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Cotton, Male and Female
Cairns birdwings, Richmond
birdwing (1840s)
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Coral tree (between (1936
and
1962)
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Pale wedge pea,
Pale flax lily,
Rice flower,
Blue spike milkwort
Noon flower
Fanny Anne Charsley (1867)
