Cover Art

The covers of the Pink books have all been based off existing paintings. For those who have been curious about the artwork, here is a complete list of the paintings and painters from Pink Carnation through Mistletoe.

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
Augustus Jules Bouvier, “Lady Holding Flowers in her Petticoat”

The Masque of the Black Tulip
Francois Martin-Kavel, “A Summer Rose”

The Deception of the Emerald Ring
Franz Xaver Winterhalter, “The Marquise of Montebello”

The Seduction of the Crimson Rose
George Romney, “Emma, Lady Hamilton as Circe”

The Temptation of the Night Jasmine
Charles Sillem Lidderdale, “At the Garden Gate”

The Betrayal of the Blood Lily
Pompeo Batoni, “Purity of Heart”

The Mischief of the Mistletoe
Francois Martin-Kavel, “Jeune fille au manchon et à la branche de houx”

21 Comments

  1. Heather on June 29, 2010 at 10:48 am

    Hi Lauren!
    I noticed that one day when I was the book store and saw another book cover that was the same as the Crimson Rose cover. So my question is why were these paintings chosen to represent the books? Is it just similarity to the heroine in that book?

  2. Lauren on June 29, 2010 at 11:06 am

    Hi, Heather! I’m guessing it’s something like that, but, to be honest, I don’t know. The art department work their magic and then I just say “oooh!” They have done an amazing job of finding paintings that look like the heroines of the various books.

  3. Elizabeth aka Miss Eliza on June 29, 2010 at 11:14 am

    The “Night Jasmine” painting as I call it, is still my fav.

  4. Elizabeth aka Miss Eliza on June 29, 2010 at 11:15 am

    Also, it would be interesting to see where this pictures are on display, or if they are in private collections…

  5. Lauren on June 29, 2010 at 11:19 am

    Good point– I’ll add dates and locations to the list (after today’s page quota).

  6. Laura on June 29, 2010 at 11:36 am

    Interesting! I like the Night Jasmine painting.

  7. Yvette on June 29, 2010 at 12:09 pm

    Hmmmm … Mary represented by an aristocrat dressed as Circe the Temptress … hmmm … strangely appropriate. This is my favorite Pink book & my second favorite cover (behind the first book’s cover).

  8. Dayana on June 29, 2010 at 2:05 pm

    Ooh! I like the Pink Carnation’s painting. Nothing ever beats the original, though I’ll say Blood Lily’s painting is really simple yet elegant. And are those lilies in the painting?

  9. AnneK on June 29, 2010 at 3:46 pm

    Crimson Rose is my favorite book cover, but my favorite painting of the list is Batoni’s “Purity of Heart”. The play with light, colors, and textures is a lot of fun.

    Emma Hart (also Emma Lyon, later Lady Hamilton) was only an aristo by marriage. She seldom acted the part of a lady, even when she became one; she took Nelson as her lover (with her husband’s consent?). She had a real rags-to-riches story, but with a sad ending because both Nelson and Hamilton died, and the populous never loved her as a Cinderella.

    She was painted several times by Romney and by Lebrun (and Gillray), often in her “attitudes”. Paintings of her helped make these artists famous.

  10. am7 on June 29, 2010 at 4:43 pm

    I have said it before Lady Emma (Crimson Rose) was on the cover of my Wurthering Heights that we read senior of high school. Seeing her as both Cathy and Mary is confusing. I love the black Tulip painting the best even though it doesn’t look exactly like Hen. I also like Blood Lily painting seeing more of the paintings particularly the BT, NJ, and BL makes me view them differently. Okay this may seem odd but does Purity of Heart(the Blood Lily cover) look like she’s going to work out? Either that or a little 1980’s.

  11. Sara G. on June 30, 2010 at 2:04 am

    Wow! I just love those paintings! I love the books but the paintings I want in my house! 🙂

  12. Vizelle on June 30, 2010 at 2:54 am

    Very interesting, thank you for sharing the info with us!

    I don’t know if you have ever mentioned it before, but do you have any info on the original hardcover art for the Black Tulip?

  13. Ashley on June 30, 2010 at 3:49 am

    I couldn’t sleep tonight, so as a result, I’ve offered up my research skills. I located information about most of the paintings used for the cover art. Below is a list of the works with additional information including alternate titles, dates of creation, and current location. I was unable to find any provenance information on the Tulip and Jasmine paintings, so I assume they are either in private collections or buried in the web in museum databases that are not publicly accessible.

    Augustus Jules Bouvier b. 1827 d. 1881
    “Lady Holding Flowers in her Petticoat”
    Currently on Display at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, UK in the Prints & Drawings Study Room

    Francois Martin-Kavel b. 1861 d. 1931
    “A Summer Rose”

    Franz Xaver Winterhalter
    “The Marquise of Montebello”
    Detail from the work, “Empress Eugenie and Her Ladies in Waiting”
    1855
    Currently on Display at Compiègne, Musée national du château, France

    George Romney
    “Emma, Lady Hamilton as Circe”
    Alternate titles: “Study of Emma Hart,” “Lady Hamilton as Circe”
    circa 1782
    Currently on Display at the Tate Britain, Room: Portraiture 1660-1800 (Room 3)

    Charles Sillem Lidderdale b. 1831 d. 1895
    “At the Garden Gate”

    Pompeo Batoni, “Purity of Heart”
    1708-1787
    Currently on Display at Uppark House and Garden in West Sussex, UK

    I hope this is informative. Maybe we can visit the Pink heroines in person one day!

  14. Sheila on June 30, 2010 at 4:32 am

    How about the same info for Mischief and Orchid ?? As I said before the cover onthe ARC of Mistletoe is even more attractive thanwhat we see here.

    ashley, thanks for your hard work, I second the idea of a Pink Carnation Tour.

  15. Lauren on June 30, 2010 at 8:55 am

    Oh, wow, Ashley, thanks!!

  16. Ashley on June 30, 2010 at 1:26 pm

    Your very welcome!

    And in response to Sheila, the Mischief of the Mistletoe cover is again a Francois Martin-Kavel work. The title and information are below:

    “Jeune fille au manchon et à la branche de houx”
    undated (although in my own opinion it looks to be an earlier work based on his other portraits I looked at)
    Provenance: Sold at Sotheby’s, New York on 13 October 1993, Lot 264, for $14,000 (most likely to a private collector)

  17. Lauren on June 30, 2010 at 6:26 pm

    Ashley, you are fabulous!

  18. Ashley on July 1, 2010 at 9:36 pm

    Thank you Lauren, you’re pretty fabulous yourself!
    I love the cover art if you couldn’t tell, and I’m graduating as an archivist this year. The digging helps me practice… (I’d help Eloise any day!)

  19. Rachel on July 5, 2010 at 12:55 pm

    I discovered that a copy of “The Marquise of Montebello” hangs in a house that I give tours of. I was actually cleaning when I noticed it. It was a nice surprise. I smile everytime I see it.

  20. Heather on July 8, 2010 at 8:54 pm

    Ashley – WOW!!! You are good! That info is seriously fascinating. I think you’re going to make an excellent archivist!!

    Lauren – you are pretty fantasmic! I can’t wait for the Mistletoe book and the Orchid Affair. Chomping at the bit here! Thanks so much for taking the time from your writing to answer us. 🙂

  21. […] this series is classier and more tasteful. The hardback covers for these books (which can be found here) reflect this image. Not only are the covers actual oil paintings from the time period, they also […]

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