Pierre Joseph Redoute (1759 - 1840) Belgian. Watercolor on Paper. ,br>Measure 13"in H x 8 3/4"in W and 15"in H x 10 1/2"in W with frame. Known for: Still life paintings, botanical illustration, teaching. Pierre-Joseph Redoute was a Belgian painter and botanist, known for his watercolours of roses, lilies and other flowers at Malmaison. He was nicknamed "The Raphael of flowers".He was an official court artist of Queen Marie Antoinette, and he continued painting through the French Revolution and Reign of Terror. Redoute survived the turbulent political upheaval to gain international recognition for his precise renderings of plants, which remain as fresh in the early 21st century as when first painted. After Josephine's death, Redoute's fortunes fell until he was appointed as a master of design for the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle in 1822. In 1824, he gave some drawing classes at the Museum national d'histoire naturelle. He taught many female royal personages, mostly Belgian. He became a Chevalier of the Legion d'honneur in 1825. Although particularly renowned for his botanical exploration of roses and lilies, he thereafter produced paintings purely for aesthetic value including those of the celebrated Choix des plus belles Fleurs. Redoute was capable of overcoming successive political crises, without great struggle, and surviving survive under different political regimes. He collaborated with the greatest botanists of his day and participated in nearly fifty publications. Over his long career, Redoute painted the gardens at the Petite Trianon of Marie Antoinette as her official court artist. During the French Revolution and Reign of Terror, he was appointed to document gardens which became national property. However, during the patronage of the generous Empress Josephine, Redoute's career flourished and he produced his most sumptuous books portraying plants from places as distant as Japan, South Africa and Australia as well as Europe and America. He died on 19 or 20 June 1840 and was interred in Lachaise Cemetery.