“For the Love of Orchids” celebrates the work of Nelly Roberts, the first RHS orchid artist.

July 5, 2022

2 Min Read
From L to R: The Dell, Nelly Roberts, Rameses, Almandin and Vine House.
From L to R: The Dell, Nelly Roberts, Rameses, Almandin and Vine House.RHS

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has announced the launch of a new collection from long-standing licensee, Moorcroft, a producer of heritage art pottery. 

For the Love of Orchids RHS Collection collection features five pieces of art pottery that celebrate the orchid and showcase the work of Nelly Roberts – the first RHS and longest-serving orchid artist – in the year that marks the 150th anniversary of her birth.  

Each piece of art pottery is made entirely by hand in the Arts and Crafts tradition and designed by Nicola Slaney, designer, Moorcroft. 

Roberts was employed to paint life-sized illustrations of the award-winning orchids and left behind thousands of studies of orchids, many of them held within the RHS Lindley Collections. Slaney has now developed five Moorcroft designs, each holding a different orchid cultivar or hybrids, and all inspired by Nelly’s work. 

The five pieces include The Dell (a jug), Almandin (a plaque), Vine House (a clock design), Rameses (a ginger jar) and Nelly Roberts (a vase). The designs are available as limited editions, numbered editions or open editions that will be discontinued when the collection closes. 

“We are thankful to have had the opportunity to take advantage of the RHS’s unrivalled orchid expertise and are very happy that ‘For the Love Of Orchids’ can bring the sheer joy of Nelly Roberts’ work to a worldwide audience,” says Catherine Gage, director, public relations, Moorcroft. “Working with the RHS and journeying into the exotic world of orchids through the eyes of one of their finest illustrators has been a rich and rewarding experience.” 

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 “I am both delighted and entranced by this new collection which celebrates the extraordinary achievements of the very first RHS orchid artist,” says Cathy Snow, licensing manager, RHS. “In the year that marks the 150th anniversary of her birth, it’s hard to think of a better tribute to the genius of Nelly Roberts than this exquisite collection of handmade art pottery inspired by some of her finest work.” 

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