Fritillaria - Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Archival giclée
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Description
A precise botanical study of Fritillaria by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, featuring his signature blend of delicate watercolour and structured graphic line work.
Charles Rennie Mackintosh produced this study of Fritillaria during his time in Walberswick, Suffolk. The work reflects his specific approach to botanical observation, which balances scientific accuracy with a distinct graphic sensibility. Mackintosh often spent his later years documenting the flora of the English coast, applying the same disciplined eye to these subjects that he brought to his architectural and interior designs.
The composition features four Fritillaria meleagris specimens, commonly known as snake's head fritillaries. The artist employs a delicate pencil underdrawing, which remains visible, providing a structural framework for the watercolour washes. The characteristic chequered pattern of the petals is rendered with precise, rhythmic marks, demonstrating his interest in geometric order. The stems and leaves are depicted with fluid, elongated lines, creating a sense of verticality that is typical of his draughtsmanship.
Unlike traditional botanical plates that aim for complete isolation of the subject, Mackintosh includes a small, rectangular cartouche at the base of the stems. This box contains the title and location, integrated into the overall design of the page. The palette is restrained, relying on muted purples, deep plums, and soft sage greens. This work provides insight into the artist's private practice, where he moved away from the large-scale commissions of his earlier career to focus on the quiet observation of nature. The paper remains largely unadorned, allowing the forms to occupy the space without the need for a background. This print captures the intersection of his architectural training and his appreciation for organic form, resulting in a composition that is both analytical and decorative.
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Because every print is made to order, we don't offer change-of-mind returns, refunds or exchanges. If your order arrives faulty, damaged or incorrect, we'll replace it free of charge — just contact us within 48 hours of delivery. See our refunds page for full details.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
Care and materials
Specific Features
Every Solis piece is made to order with archival, gallery-quality materials built to last.
- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
- Multiple sizes and framing options available
- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
- Framed prints arrive ready to hang
Care & Cleaning
To keep your artwork looking its best:
- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
- Never use liquid cleaners on the print or canvas surface
- Keep in a dry, room-temperature space
- Handle prints with clean, dry hands
Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Fritillaria - Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Artist Biography
Charles Rennie Mackintosh
He was the fourth of eleven children, seven of whom survived infancy. His father was a police superintendent. The boy was probably dyslexic, struggled badly at school, and used sketchbooks to manage what appear to have been emotional difficulties. He had a contracted sinew in one foot that gave him a limp, and childhood rheumatic fever left one side of his face permanently drooped. None of this stopped him drawing.
He enrolled at Glasgow School of Art at fifteen, studying part-time while apprenticed to the architect John Hutchinson. In 1889 he joined Honeyman and Keppie, where he would remain for nearly two decades. He met Margaret Macdonald in 1892. Together with her sister Frances and Herbert McNair, they formed a group that became known as The Four. Mackintosh and Margaret married in 1900. He acknowledged publicly that Margaret had genius where he had only talent.
His greatest commission was the Glasgow School of Art building itself, won in competition in 1897. The library wing, completed in 1909, is considered one of the finest interiors of the twentieth century. He designed all four tea rooms for the entrepreneur Catherine Cranston, going so far as to specify the waitresses' dresses and order the flowers. In Vienna, at the eighth Secessionist Exhibition in 1900, his work was received with an enthusiasm Glasgow never matched.
His style fell from favour. He drank. He was asked to leave his firm. In 1914 he and Margaret moved to Walberswick in Suffolk, where he was briefly arrested as a suspected German spy because of his Vienna correspondence and unusual manner. He was released without charge but effectively driven from the village.
In 1923, they moved to Port Vendres in the south of France. The light and landscape revived him. He painted watercolours of the surrounding hills and harbour with an obsessive attention to geological detail, completing around forty before returning to London for the last time.
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