Silver Linden (Tilia tomentosa) — Fine Art Print

Native to southeastern Europe and western Asia, the Silver Linden takes its name from its leaves, which are deep green above and covered in silvery-white felt beneath, so the whole crown shimmers when the wind turns them over. A symmetrical, pyramidal tree, it is valued for its tolerance of heat and drought and its intensely fragrant summer flowers.

This print features Robert O'Brien's botanical illustration of the Silver Linden (Tilia tomentosa), with its leaf shown from both the green upper side and silvery underside, and a bract of its fruit. See all shade trees, or his Basswood, the American linden.

About the print

• Museum-quality giclée on 100% cotton rag Cold Press fine art paper, matte finish
• Archival inks, printed to order in the USA
• Ships unframed. Frame under glass or acrylic for best preservation.

About the artist

Robert O'Brien was one of the most prolific and widely published botanical illustrators in the United States. Specializing in trees for more than three decades, he illustrated nearly 100 forestry field guides and nature education publications for clients from Florida to Alaska, including the USDA Forest Service, the Smithsonian, the National Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, with work also published in Austria, Canada, Sweden, Brazil and Mexico.

Educated at the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Madrid, where he studied the master paintings of the Prado, he developed a distinctive method blending traditional painting with digital technique, achieving a level of botanical accuracy and detail rarely seen in the genre. His archive of more than 500 tree and plant illustrations is now cared for by his daughter, artist Kelly O'Brien.

"When I've nailed it, when I've gotten it right, that piece will go on living, long after I walk away from it." — Robert O'Brien