Chardons (Thistles), pl. 15

Plate, part of a collection of 30 pochoir pattern plates, originally part of a book titled "Les fleurs et leurs applications décoratives" (Flowers and their decorative applications), created by Émile-Allain Séguy and published in Paris by A. Calavas, as part of the collection "Librairie des Arts Decoratifs" (Library of Decorative Arts) in 1902. The plate features four ornamental designs inspired on the natural beauty of thistles, providing what Séguy considered a successful example of the application of scientific study of flowers in artistic creation, resulting in colorful designs likely intended for textiles or wallpapers. The first design is made up of interlacing branches, one of them thin and with thorns, outlined with red, the other with stylized leaves, colored with golden-brown, and a bundle of two semi-abstract thistle flowers, colored with white and red, and leaves, colored with green, over an orange ground. The second design is made up of thin, interlacing branches with leaves, colored with shades of green over an orange ground. The third design is made up of interlacing branches with leaves, outlined with thin, green lines, and colored with light green, and stylized thistle flowers, executed with pastel green and white, over a green ground. The fourth design is made up of thin, undulating branches, colored with dark green, with stylized, scrolling leaves, outlined with light green and colored with dark blue, and semi-abstract thistle flowers, executed with white and shades of green, over a green ground with highlights of gold.