Anna Alma-Tadema, the younger daughter of Victorian artist Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, painted this highly intricate watercolor while still a teenager. It depicts the “Columned Drawing Room” in Townshend House at Regent’s Park, London, where she lived with her family

Sir Alma-Tadema created in his studio-house a set of eclectic interiors in different styles ranging from traditional Dutch to Egyptian, Ancient Greek, Pompeiian, Byzantine and Japanese. These served as props for paintings and provided inspirations for his second wife Laura Epps and his daughter Anna who were also artists

A contemporary reviewer thought this painting “astonishing …… for its mastery of detail, elaborate minuteness of work and glow of color”. This is evident from the depiction of the decorative patterns on the pink brocade curtain and the light effect on the fabric creases. Also impressive are the reflections on the shiny surface of the floor panels lit apparently by a light source from an unseen window to the right

The Drawing Room, Townshend House was exhibited in 1886 at the Grosvenor Gallery (which specialized in Pre-Raphaelite art), and at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893