The Bouquet

In a space enveloped in gentle green tones, a woman tenderly holds a bouquet.

A beautiful yet serene small work by Waterhouse, who gained fame for depicting dramatic scenes from mythology and literature.

But in fact, around 1908, when this painting was created, the artist, approaching old age, was secretly confronting the shadow of his own death.

Around 60 years old at the time, he was beginning to be afflicted by a serious illness (cancer) that would later claim his life. From this period onwards, he suddenly stopped depicting the dramatic narratives he was known for, and began to immerse himself in a quiet series of works featuring only 'flowers and women' as motifs.

This 'Bouquet,' quietly housed in the Falmouth Art Gallery in the UK, is one such study symbolizing the change in his state of mind in his later years.

He was inspired at the time by an old 17th-century poem that spoke of the transience of life, stating, 'The flower that smiles today, tomorrow dies' (or 'Gather ye rosebuds while ye may').

As if to capture flowers destined to wither someday, and preserve their beauty on canvas for just this moment, the ailing artist continued to paint women holding flowers, as if possessed.

The small bouquets he painted as the footsteps of death drew near were by no means dark or despairing, but fresh and full of vitality.

What ultimately sustained him as he was consumed by illness was neither the magic of dramatic myths nor tragic heroines, but perhaps the fleeting yet beautiful radiance of 'life here and now,' destined to fade away.