Spring amongst the Magnolia Blossom

For the blossoming of Spring this week, this exuberant gouache by sought-after illustrator Kay Nixon (1894–1988). Nixon is admired for her wildlife paintings in a distinctive graphic style that evokes the aesthetic of Japanese prints. A prolific illustrator, she is particularly known for her work for Enid Blyton books. Here a pair of Indian palm squirrels nestle amongst pink and white magnolia blossom; the artist spent twenty-six years living in India—during which time her commissions included posters for the Indian railways and Bombay Natural History Society—and the country's wildlife had a lifelong impact on her work.