Botanica Grafica

Hermes.com >> The Story Behind

Arumfel, Centummorbia, Eupatorium, Loc Sumutri, Spatula fœtida, Zurumbeth… The most scholarly might perhaps recognize these species, listed in the index of The Herball or Generall Historie of Plantes, the 16th century botanical manual used by Gianpaolo Pagni as a backdrop for his new variety of herbarium. Layer after layer, as if planting seeds, he superimposed botanical plates and his stamped designs, the fruit of a graphic language to which only he holds the key. A flower blossomed, then another, until there were twelve in every color!