MARGARET STONES'S FLORA OF LOUISIANA: THE BATON ROUGE CONNECTION

April 4-August 3, 2014

The LSU Museum of Art features Margaret Stones's Flora of Louisiana: The Baton Rouge Connection beginning Friday, April 4, and running through August 3, 2014.

Stones is ranked among the 20th century's most accomplished botanical artists. In 1976, LSU commissioned Stones to create watercolors of Louisiana's native flora to commemorate the bicentennial of the United States and the 50th anniversary of the LSU campus in its present location. The Australian-born botanical painter drew from plant specimens collected for her in East Baton Rouge Parish. The exhibition features 55 watercolors and highlights the individuals who contributed directly to the success of the artist's project. The works are drawn from LSU Libraries' Special Collections Division, located within Hill Memorial Library, with a few private loans on view as well.

Margaret Stones's Flora of Louisiana: The Baton Rouge Connection offers a glimpse of Stones's working process, from depicting details of plants, to creating finished, scientifically accurate drawings of whole specimens. The exhibition tells the story of a community that came together to support an artistic vision and produce an artistic treasure for Louisiana.

This exhibition made possible by the generosity of the following: The Josef Sternberg Memorial Fund, Nadine Carter Russell, Deborah Lamb, Susan & Richard Lipsey, Susan Munson, Gresdna Doty & James Traynham, The Murrill Family Fund, Roberta Phillabaum in memory of Leslie Phillabaum and the Friends of Margaret Stones. Most works for the exhibition are drawn from LSU Libraries' Special Collections Division, Hill Memorial Library.

Click on the link to view the online collection through the Louisiana Digital Library.