Jason Garden Images Placemats
World exploration and natural discoveries had a profound effect on individuals in the 18th century. Naturalists in the New World recorded flora and fauna and sent botanical illustrations and even specimens back to England. The dominant influence in this design is an important watercolor painting of a magnolia painted by George Ehret in 1737. Ehret is widely regarded as the most important botanical illustrator of the 18th century, when curiosity and interest in the natural world led to the incorporation of designs from flora and fauna in silver, furniture, prints, textiles, and other objects known as the "decorative arts". The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has an extensive collection of the decorative arts that reflect this great interest in nature. The striking white magnolia image is set against a black background.