OBJECTS Ornament Anonymous school assignment Sketches of a leaf and microstructures, after 1900 K. K. Vocational School for Knitwork in Krásná Lípa (Schönlinde) Ink, watercolours and gouache on cardboard; 50.7 x 34.8 cm The ornamental stylisation of floral and animal forms was preceded by detailed morphological studies of the individual parts that comprised the optical representation of their microstructure. This drawing derived not only from observations of nature, but also from the numerous patterns published in various design albums and books, which drew their own inspiration from photographs and microphotographs of nature. The visible shapes served as a point of departure for simplified, abstracted patterns that could be arranged into infinite rhythmic structures.