Hepatica nobilis (Hepatica), Corylus avellana (Common Filbert). Sheet 1 from the portfolio Nature Studies

Hepatica nobilis (Hepatica), Corylus avellana (Common Filbert). Sheet 1 from the portfolio Nature Studies is a delicate botanical study created by Hilma af Klint during the spring of 1919. This piece, executed in watercolor, pencil, and ink on paper, is the first sheet within a portfolio of 46 related drawings known as the Nature Studies. The Swedish artist dated the work precisely, indicating its completion between April 22–23, 1919.

Klint demonstrates keen observational skill, capturing the minute details of the Hepatica nobilis flower and the structure of the Corylus avellana, or Common Filbert. Unlike her larger, purely abstract paintings, this specific portfolio shows the artist engaging directly with the natural world, utilizing precision drawing to document botanical forms. The work’s medium, a combination of sharp pencil outlines and controlled washes of watercolor, reflects the scientific rigor often applied to natural history illustration while still retaining Klint’s distinctive sensitivity. The clarity of the lines and subtle color application highlights the ephemeral beauty of the subjects captured in their season of bloom.

Created late in Klint’s career, this drawing forms an important link between her early interests in science and her later pioneering work in abstraction. The Nature Studies portfolio reveals the foundational organic sources that informed her complex symbolic vocabulary. As a significant example of Swedish drawing from the early 20th century, the work resides in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York. While the original 1919 drawing remains preserved, high-quality digital records and prints of this type of work are often made available through public domain initiatives, ensuring the artist’s unique approach to the natural world is accessible globally.