The Emerald Lily

About this work

Everything in the picture turns toward one gesture. The woman's hand, her closed eyes and the tilt of her face all meet at the single lily she holds, so the flower becomes the bright centre of a mostly green image. The emerald hood falls in long folds around her shoulders and frames the face like a pointed arch, and the auburn curls that escape it bring a warm note into all that cool colour. Behind her, the gold halo is worked with circular patterns that ripple outwards, held in by a deep green border. White lilies crowd the background on both sides, repeating the held flower many times over, smaller and softer. Look closely and the cream bodice shows fine gold detail under the robe; step back and the picture settles into three clear tones: green, cream and gold.

Around 1900 Mucha produced The Precious Stones, a set of four decorative panels in which Topaz, Ruby, Amethyst and Emerald each appear as a woman, every one paired with flowers in her own colour. The Emerald Lily borrows that idea of a gem translated into a person, though the composition itself is new. The choice of flower suits the period too. Lilies were among the favourite plants of Art Nouveau designers, whose love of long stems and flowing lines found a perfect subject in them, and they turn up on glass, jewellery, posters and wallpaper of the time. Here the white lily gives the emerald green the bright contrast it needs.

Hung beside The Amethyst Iris, it makes a jewel-toned pair of flower portraits, green answering violet. For a library corner, The Midnight Reading Room picks up the same green in its glass lamp shade. Mid-toned walls flatter it most: sage, olive, dusty teal or a warm stone colour, all of which let the cream areas glow. Choose a slim brass or matt gold frame, or dark green lacquer for a richer look, and leave a cream mat of five to eight centimetres. Soft side light from a window is kinder to the gold than a spotlight. The 7168 × 10752 px file prints sharp up to about 60 × 90 cm, large enough for a bedroom wall. A Frame TV version with a gallery mat comes included as well.