National Galleries of Scotland

Blackadder drew inspiration from Indian Mughal painting (a style of miniature painting). A characteristic of Mughal painting is its use of borders , which began to appear in Blackadder’s own work such as this picture.

Works such as this retain the form of the table, with the top raised to give the fullest view. Blackadder later dispensed with this method, using the surface of the canvas itself as the field on which objects appear.

Blackadder’s visits to Japan resulted in substantial oil, such as this, in which an expansive sparse interior contrasts with a complex garden scene seen through framed paper screens.

• © The Artist

In this botanical painting, the background remain untouched, allowing the flower heads to create their own complex patterns, which would otherwise be subdued by a background wash.

• © The Artist, Private Collection

Flower paintings such as this encompass Blackadder’s different approaches – this one, for example, demonstrates the artist’s interest in a graphic description of the overall, uprooted structure.

• © The Artist