Dahlias

Gladys Wilkins Murphy

Gladys W. Murphy studied printmaking with Eliza Draper Gardner at the Rhode Island School of Design and is associated with the Providence R.I. artists group.

"Dahlias" is an exceptional example of Murphy's color woodcuts and is a very painterly print. Her design elements are outlined in black creating small fields or cells for the colors which she painted onto her blocks. Each impression will vary.

Dahlias are a summer flower with decorative buds on the ends of curved stems. There seems to be an endless variety of shapes, sizes, and colors to the flowers and, as seen here, they make highly decorative arrangements in any vessel at hand.