She went away accompanied by the Lions 

Arthur Rackham made this pen and ink drawing with watercolor in England during the early 20th century. The scene depicts a fair maiden with a fashionable fur cap accompanied by regal lions. Rackham made illustrations for books like "Alice in Wonderland" and "Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens," at a time when developments in printing technology were expanding the market for illustrated books. In this context, Rackham developed a distinctive style with delicate lines and muted colors reminiscent of earlier artists like Albrecht Durer. His fairy-tale subjects offered an escape from the rapidly changing modern world, but Rackham's style was very much of his time. The art nouveau style, with its emphasis on decorative lines and stylized forms, was very influential on his aesthetic. As viewers, our experience of Rackham's art is filtered through institutional forces, like the art market and technologies of reproduction. By researching these factors, we can come to a clearer understanding of how the social context shapes the meaning of art.