White Rose (Rosa Alba Cimbaefolia) by Pierre Joseph Redouté, 1817

Pierre-Joseph Redouté’s Rosa Alba Cimbaefolia, published in 1817, gives a white rose an imposing yet remarkably delicate presence. A tall, branching stem carries one fully opened bloom, its creamy petals loosely gathered around a warm central cluster, while smaller buds rise above it with blush-pink tips. The plant occupies the centre of a pale, spacious ground, its upward movement balanced by a generous spray of deep green leaves below.

Redouté was celebrated for flower studies that brought scientific scrutiny into unusually graceful alignment with decorative art. Working during a period of intense European interest in botanical classification, he treated plants as subjects worthy of both exact examination and refined pictorial arrangement. Here, the identifying structures of the rose—serrated leaves, prickled stems, buds at different stages of growth and the layered construction of the flower—are presented with clarity, yet the specimen never feels reduced to a diagram.

A closer look

The open rose forms the visual centre of gravity. Its petals are not uniformly white: cool grey shadows gather between the folds, while touches of cream and the faintest pink soften their outer edges. This restrained tonal modelling gives the flower volume without disturbing its luminous character. The surrounding buds offer a compact counterpoint, their tightly furled forms moving from green sepals to muted rose-pink at the tips.

Below the blossom, the foliage becomes denser and more animated. Individual leaves turn in different directions, revealing variations in tone from fresh mid-green to darker, shadowed passages. Fine veins spread across their surfaces, and the sharply serrated margins are rendered with the same care as the tiny thorns along the connecting stems. These details establish the plant’s botanical character, while the interlacing branches prevent the composition from becoming rigidly symmetrical.

The pale background is essential to the plate’s effect. With no landscape or ornamental setting, every contour remains legible: the thin right-hand stem, the angled leaflets near the base and the narrow spaces between overlapping foliage. At the bottom, the French label “Roser blanc à feuilles de Chanivre.” anchors the floating specimen in the classificatory language of botanical publication. The lettering is discreet, preserving the rose as the principal focus.

Context and significance

In the early nineteenth century, botanical illustration occupied a productive territory between natural history and connoisseurship. Such images enabled close study of plant forms while also appealing to readers and collectors through their compositional elegance. Redouté became one of the era’s most admired practitioners precisely because he could satisfy both demands: his flowers are sufficiently precise to communicate structure, but sufficiently sensitively arranged to possess an independent pictorial life.

Rosa Alba Cimbaefolia demonstrates that balance particularly well. The rose is shown not as an idealised, isolated bloom but as a living structure extending from thorned stem to opening flower. Its quiet palette and ample negative space make the smallest observations—the pink flush of a bud, the crease of a petal, the change in direction of a leaf—part of the pleasure of looking.

Choosing the right size and finish

Artwork can feel intimate at smaller sizes and dramatically more architectural at larger ones. Use the room preview, model image and size guide to see how the proportions and scale will work in your space.

If you need an exact size, specialist framing or help planning a larger display, ask our workshop for advice.

The model in the listing images is holding the 18x24in (45x60cm) version of this art print.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, or one considered visual detail. See examples of personalised artwork.

Choose Original to retain the colour and character of the source artwork, or Aged for a warmer, more antique appearance. See examples of our Aged artwork.

Every piece is produced to archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte art paper. Choose an art print, framed art print or framed canvas using the finish options above.

Framed art prints use crystal-clear optical acrylic for excellent clarity, lower weight and safer delivery than glass. Each piece arrives professionally framed and ready to hang.

Selected artworks can be produced at statement sizes up to 3 metres (10ft). Custom sizing and specialist framing are also available. If the exact option you need is not listed, contact our workshop.