Tagetes patula (udspærret fløjlsblomst); Tagetes erecta (opret fløjlsblomst) 1649 - 1659

Editor: We’re looking at a botanical illustration of marigolds, or *Tagetes patula* and *Tagetes erecta* to use their Latin names. It's rendered in gouache and drawing on paper by Hans Simon Holtzbecker from sometime between 1649 and 1659. I’m immediately struck by the almost photographic realism – a testament to detailed observation. What details jump out at you? Curator: Well, it's less photograph and more… memory. Holtzbecker captures the *essence* of the marigold. It’s Northern Renaissance, so think Dürer’s clumpy turfs of grass suddenly bursting into bloom. These blooms, individually, they almost have personalities, don't they? A sort of gentle, introspective joy. I imagine Holtzbecker spending hours coaxing these portraits onto paper, not just documenting, but really feeling the texture, the colour. Editor: I hadn't considered the emotional investment. It felt purely scientific before. Curator: And yet, what is science *but* a form of love? He obviously relishes each petal. Gouache gives such a rich, almost velvety texture. Imagine him, centuries ago, in a sun-drenched room, capturing the last light on these blooms. Are you picking up on the subtle variations in the greens of the leaves too? Editor: Yes! Now that you point it out, the leaves do feel alive. I was so focused on the flowers, I nearly missed them! The way they jut out is amazing! Curator: It's a quiet, insistent beauty, wouldn’t you say? Editor: Absolutely. It makes me want to look at everything more closely from now on, to find that hidden personality. Curator: Exactly! Isn't that the greatest gift art can offer?