Iris Ensata

 

Richard Wagener

  1944 - PRESENT (biography)

2017  

woodengraving 

4 1/2 x 3" image 

pencil, lower right 

3 of 18  

dated lower right; pencil titled verso 

 

antique-white wove Zerkall 

published 

artist 

RW164 

$275.00 

According to Gardenia, Iris ensata (Japanese Irises) are among the most elegant and breathtaking Irises. More refined and less conspicuous than the Tall Bearded Irises, the Beardless Irises feature huge orchid-like flowers that are a delight to gaze at. Usually ruffled and flat in form, they rise on erect, sturdy stems atop a dense clump of sword-sharped, linear green leaves, up to 24 inches long, with prominent midribs. They have been cultivated in Japan for over 500 years and are referred to as Hanashobu in Japan. Wagener engraves each line individually into the end-grain of the block, not with a multiple line tool.