Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose

Around 1886, John Singer Sargent painted this Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose in 1885-86, depicting two young girls lighting paper lanterns in a garden at dusk. Dolly and Polly Barnard, daughters of illustrator Frederick Barnard, wear white dresses among pink roses and tall white Japanese lilies. The title comes from an 1880s song: "Have you seen my Flora pass this way?" with the answer "Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose."

Sargent worked outdoors in the brief minutes when evening light was perfect, giving the picture its purple twilight tint. He began in September 1885 and finished in late October 1886, replacing dying flowers with artificial ones as autumn came. He also cut about two feet from the left side, creating the final square format.

The Royal Academy summer exhibition of 1887 received the painting with mixed reviews, some criticizing its "Frenchified" style. But Sir Frederic Leighton, Royal Academy president, encouraged Tate to purchase it using the Chantrey Bequest. It was Sargent's first work acquired by a public museum and remains at Tate Britain today.