Print Study Picks: Art in Bloom
By Lori Williamson
April 21, 2025—Welcome to Print Study Picks, a monthly series of dispatches from Mia’s Herschel V. Jones Print Study Room. Selections will complement recent exhibition openings, the changing seasons, events, and may include an occasional random draw!
In this edition, it’s Art in Bloom season, and we’ve got flowers on the brain—those eternal symbols of spring itself, with all their glorious explosions of color and light.
Joan Mitchell; Printer: Arte Adrien Maeght, Paris; Publisher: Maeght Éditeur, Paris, Sunflower III, 1972, color aquatint and etching. Gift of the Print and Drawing Council and The Miscellaneous Works of Art Purchase Fund, P.94.5
This print captures the dynamic nature of flowers and their ability to intrigue. Artist Joan Mitchell, regarded as one of the supreme colorists of the abstract expressionist movement, uses a deconstructed sunflower to contemplate forms found in nature. Color and movement are central, as the sunflower reflects itself. Is it newly opened, dying, or just existing for now? Works like this provide an opportunity for questions and reflection, without offering easy answers.
Jean Ignace Isidore Gérard Grandville; Engraver: Charles Michel Geoffroi, Narcisse, from Les Fleurs Animees, 1846, hand-colored steel engraving. The Minnich Collection, The Ethel Morrison Van Derlip Fund, P.17,555
This whimsical piece depicts a common flower as an ornately dressed woman. We see a narcissus flower gazing—true to her name—upon her reflection in a pond, and to her surprise, she finds a fly and a lizard gazing back. Mia holds 10 of the 52 images in this book, Les Fleurs Animees (The Flowers Personified), an 1847 French publication.
Jan van Huysum, Bouquet of Flowers in a Terracotta Vase, 1723, graphite, black chalk, gray wash, squared in red and black chalk, brown ink framing lines. The Martin and Brown Endowment Fund and the Marguerite S. McNally Endowment for Art Acquisition, 2010.16
Jan van Huysum was a master Dutch flower painter of the early 18th century. He depicted impossible arrangements, composed of flowers that never bloomed simultaneously. This drawing is a raucous imagining of a flower arrangement, contrasting the faint grid lines that guide the piece. The juxtaposition of the youths on the vase with the short-lived nature of cut flowers can be seen as a memento mori: a reminder that life is fleeting.
Can’t get enough flowers? Join the Friends of the Institute and celebrate spring at Mia during Art in Bloom! This year’s four-day festival takes place April 24–27, 2025. Free and open to everyone, Art in Bloom showcases imaginative floral interpretations of selected works of art from Mia’s permanent collection, created by more than 100 individual and commercial florists. Experience the floral beauty and fragrance throughout the museum, take a free guided tour, and enjoy family-friendly activities.
About Lori Williamson, Supervisor of the Herschel V. Jones Print Study Room at Mia
Lori Williamson creates mini-exhibitions and teaches classes and Print Study Room visitors about the museum’s rich collection of works on paper. She’s the primary caretaker for more than 40,000 prints, 6,000 drawings, and 600 artists’ books, collaborating with curators in American, European, and Global Contemporary Art to make these holdings accessible. Williamson supports scholars through research and inquiry, and advocates for the inclusion of works on paper in exhibitions, social media, and outreach, helping to connect diverse audiences with this dynamic collection.
Interested in seeing something in the Print Study Room? All are welcome by appointment. Email Lori Williamson and copy the Print Study Room to make an appointment.