Water-lily textile

Cheney Brothers|Associated Artists

1883–1900 · Silk, printed, woven · The American Wing

This piece of "shadow silk" with the water-lily design in golden yellow varies somewhat from the two other pieces in the collection (2002.355.2; 28.70.12); here a slightly different weaving technique has distorted the warp-printed image even further. The watery look is part of the design’s intended effect: to suggest the movement of leaves and blossoms as they float on the water’s surface. To make "shadow silks" a special warp-printing technique was employed: the warp (the vertical threads) was preprinted with the pattern beforehand, and when the solid-colored horizontal weft threads were woven in, the designs naturally fell slightly out of alignment.

Artist

Cheney Brothers|Associated Artists

Date

1883–1900

Medium

Silk, printed, woven

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of Mrs. Boudinot Keith, 1928