A Life in Watercolor
Born in 1828 in Watertown, Massachusetts, Ellen Robbins was the youngest child of a factory owner. Following the death of her father and the subsequent burning of his factory, Robbins turned to watercolor painting to help support her family. While she received some training from Stephen Salisbury Tuckerman, she was largely self-taught. Her skill in botanical illustration became widely recognized, particularly for her paintings of wildflowers and autumn leaves. Her work was noted for its realism; contemporary accounts suggested her flowers were so lifelike that bees might land upon them, and her leaf paintings were occasionally mistaken for actual leaves.
Robbins's success allowed her to expand her artistic reach beyond individual paintings. She produced books of flower illustrations and created botanical designs for various mediums, including china, furniture, tiles, and textiles. In the 1840s, she also began teaching watercolor painting. Her reputation grew to the point that she was hired by the lithographer Louis Prang to create a series of flowers and autumn leaves for prints. Additionally, she was invited to create a frieze for Wellesley College.
Artistic Legacy and Travels
Throughout her career, Robbins's work became fashionable in both America and England. She was a contributor to the first annual exhibition of the American Watercolor Society in 1867/1868. Her travels often took her abroad or to Maine, where she stayed at Appledore House and painted the flowers from the garden of the writer Celia Thaxter. In 1896, she shared reflections on her life through a series of articles in New England Magazine titled "Reminiscences of a Flower Painter."
Her published works include:
- Autumnal Leaves (1868, 18 watercolors)
Fragen & Antworten
Wie beliebt sind die Kunstwerke von Ellen Robbins?
Statistiken zu den Werken von Ellen Robbins finden Sie auf der Statistiken-Seite des Künstlers.
In welcher Stadt und in welchem Land wurde Ellen Robbins geboren?
Ellen Robbins wurde in Watertown, Vereinigte Staaten, geboren.
Wie finde ich alle Werke von Ellen Robbins nach einem bestimmten Medium sortiert?
Auf der Seite Nach Medien sortiert werden die Kunstwerke von Ellen Robbins nach Technik gruppiert.
In welche Zeitperioden lässt sich die Karriere von Ellen Robbins unterteilen?
Die Werdegang von Ellen Robbins ist eine scrollbare Zeitachse, die die Werke des Künstlers in chronologischer Reihenfolge präsentiert, unterteilt in Kapitel nach Schaffensperioden.
