Plate 19, from "Histoire naturelle des perroquets"
This plates originates from the publication Histoire naturelle des perroquets, one of several examples of the successful collaboration between Levaillant and Barraband. Their first project together transpired after Levaillant returned to France following extensive travels through Africa. Barraband provided the illustrations for Levaillant’s six-volume Histoire naturelle des oiseaux d’Afrique (1796–1808); he outdid himself, however, in the illustrations of parrot species for Histoire naturelle des perroquets, which were celebrated by contemporaries as the most lifelike renderings of birds ever made. Their strong three-dimensional quality was achieved not only through accurate drawing, but also through the combination of color printing and further additions of bright colors and shading, done by hand in watercolor.
Artwork Details
- Title: Plate 19, from "Histoire naturelle des perroquets"
- Series/Portfolio: Histoire naturelle des perroquets
- Artist: François Levaillant (French, Paramaribo 1753–1824 La Noue)
- Draftsman: Jacques Barraband (French, Aubusson 1767–1809 Lyon)
- Printmaker: Langlois
- Date: 1801–06
- Medium: Hand-colored engraving
- Dimensions: Plate: 12 3/4 × 10 1/16 in. (32.4 × 25.6 cm)
Sheet: 17 5/8 × 13 3/8 in. (44.8 × 34 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Bequest of Mrs. Charles Wrightsman, 2019
- Object Number: 2019.282.38
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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