Bird, Art, British, Benazech, Natural History Design, Antique Print Framed, London, 1766

Charles Fenn (artist)
Peter Paul Benazech (engraver) (1744 – 1783)
Natural History Design with Birds and Insects
From The Artists Vade Mecum, Being the Whole Art of Drawing
Robert Sayer, London: 1766
Hand-colored engraving
9.5 x 13.5 inches, framed overall
$625

A natural history print serving as a design to be used in drawing instruction, a common pastime for women in Great Britain in the 18th and 19th centuries. It incorporates flying birds, butterflies, and insects on naturalistic shrubbery, vegetation and fruits. Design books such as these also served as inspiration for professional designers of decorative arts, particularly ceramics. As stated on the British Museum website, the artist, Charles Fenn is known for his designs that were adapted for porcelains:

Text from Dawson 2007: From the beginning the Worcester porcelain factory used birds as a decorative motif, initially — as on the early vases nos 21 nd 22 — the engravings of Charles Fenn (fl. c. 1758) that appear in The Ladies Amusement (see no 22) were closely copied and the birds painted in a delicate pale palette.

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