Who painted Striped Lily?

Striped Lily was painted by Gerald Cooper in 1946.

Where can I see Striped Lily?

Striped Lily is held by Victoria and Albert Museum.

Striped Lily by Gerald Cooper (1946) — Meaning & Museum

About this work

Gerald Cooper made this print in 1946. It shows flowers in a simple, bold style. The print was part of a plan to bring art into schools after the war.

The School Prints scheme gave artists like Cooper a chance to create art that kids could see every day. Prints were cheap and easy to hang up.

Check out the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Overview

Gerald Cooper’s 1946 print titled *Striped Lily* is a lithographic work that presents a stylised floral composition in a clear, graphic manner. Produced for the School Prints programme, the image was intended for display in post‑war classrooms, offering children regular visual contact with contemporary art.

Subject & Meaning

The print depicts a lily rendered in bold, simplified lines and contrasting stripes, emphasizing form over naturalistic detail. By reducing the flower to its essential shapes, Cooper highlights the decorative potential of botanical subjects while encouraging viewers to appreciate pattern and design.

Technique & Style

Created as a lithograph, the work employs a drawn frame that allows it to be pinned directly to a wall. Cooper’s approach combines flat colour areas with strong outlines, reflecting the modernist tendency toward abstraction and clarity that characterised many mid‑century British prints.

History & Provenance

*Striped Lily* was commissioned in 1945 by Brenda Rawnsley as part of the School Prints scheme, which enlisted established artists to produce affordable lithographs for educational use. The programme operated until 1949, ending due to financial constraints, after which the print entered the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Context

The School Prints initiative emerged in the immediate aftermath of World War II, aiming to democratise access to contemporary art during a period of national austerity. By supplying inexpensive, easily hung works to schools, the scheme sought to cultivate an early appreciation of modern artistic developments among British children.