Stunning Free Botanical Sunflower Drawings In The Public Domain

Explore our collection of stunning sunflower drawings, which are free to print and in the public domain. They are perfect for art projects, home decor, and DIY crafts.

It’s not surprising that sunflowers symbolize happiness. When I look at one, it makes me smile. Here, I’ve curated a collection of copyright-free vintage sunflower drawings.

Sunflowers are grown all over the world, but they are a native to America. Every child in Britain must have grown a sunflower in primary school.

The flowers are easy to grow and grow impressively tall (American Sunflowers can reach up to 4 meters). That makes them a popular plant for introducing children to the natural sciences. All three of my children have come home from primary school with a sunflower seed in a pot. They carefully watered and tendered the seed, measuring the height of the flower every week and making sunflower drawings—all in the name of science.

Beautiful Vintage Sunflower Illustrations

There are over 70 different species of sunflower. The French call sunflowers “tournesol,” which means “turn with the sun.” Sunflowers exhibit a phenomenon known as heliotropism. The flowering heads of the plant track the sun’s movement and turn to face the sun.

Sunflower drawings and paintings have been a popular subject of many of the world’s greatest artists, such as Gauguin and Monet. Vincent Van Gogh’s series of sunflower paintings is the most famous. He did them in Arles, in southern France, between 1888 and 1889. Vincent painted large canvases with sunflowers in a vase, with three shades of yellow ‘and nothing else’.

The last time one of Vincent Van Gogh’s sunflower paintings ( Vase of Fifteen Sunflowers) was sold at an auction was in 1987. It was the most expensive painting ever sold at the time, selling for over $39 million at Christie’s in London.

The downloaded sunflower drawings will be of a higher resolution than the picture. Just click on the title above to download the sunflower illustration you want. The higher-resolution sunflower image will open in a new tab, and you can then print or save it.

The Sunflower Drawings

1. Sunflower Drawings – Johannes Teyler

A gorgeous sunflower by the Dutch artist Johannes Teyler. He was a Dutch Golden Age painter, engraver, mathematics teacher, and inventor of the colour print. This sunflower was painted in the late 17th century, sometime between 1698-1699.

The original painting of this sunflower is in the world-famous Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

2. Sunflower Drawing (no.2) – Johannes Teyler

Another one of Johannes Teyler’s beautiful sunflower drawings at the
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

3. Sunflower – Hans-Simon Holtzbecker

A sunflower illustration from the 17th Century by Hans-Simon Holtzbecker. Holtzbecker was known for his flower paintings, he created on behalf of Duke Friedrich III  for the seminal Gottorfer Codex. A four-volume plant atlas.

4. Large Sunflower Drawings – “Hortus Eystettensis”

The Hortus Eystettensis is a codex produced by Basilius Besler in 1613 of the garden of the bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. There are two versions of this large sunflower drawing: this colourful one and another below in black and white.

5. Large Black & White Sunflower Drawing

The same sunflower illustration as the one above, but this time a black and white version.

6. Botanical Sunflower Illustration – 1887

A botanical illustration of the sunflower from the book “American medicinal plants; an illustrated and descriptive guide to the American plants used as homeopathic remedies: their history, preparation, chemistry and physiological effects. By Charles F. Millspaugh” (1887)

If you are wondering about the medicinal properties of sunflowers, “a tea made from the leaves is astringent, diuretic and expectorant, it is used in the treatment of high fevers. The crushed leaves are used as a poultice on sores, swellings, snakebites and spider bites. A tea made from the flowers is used in the treatment of malaria and lung ailments. The seed is also considered to be diuretic and expectorant. “

7. Detailed Biology of Sunflower Illustration 1789

A detailed natural history illustration of a dissected sunflower. These sunflower drawings are from a book showing the sexual system of plants, “
Illustration Systematis Sexualis Linnaei” John Miller 1789.

8. Sunflower painting – 1682

It was painted by Alexander Marshal, an English entomologist, gardener and botanical artist. Alexander painted flowers and plants for the pleasure it gave to him and his horticulturist friends.

I assume the dog is in this sunflower drawing to get a scale perspective.

9. Silver-leaved Sunflower Illustration – 1897

A silver-leaved sunflower drawing from “Favourite Flowers of Garden and Greenhouse” by Edward Step.

10. Purpledisc Sunflower -1826

The purple disc sunflower is native to North America. One plant can produce 1-15 flower heads, each with 10-15 yellow ray florets surrounding 75 or more red or purple disc florets. 

This sunflower illustration is from Curtis’s Botanical Magazine 1826.

11. California Sunflower

This is a species of sunflower native to California and Baja California. The illustration is from the French book Flore des serres et des jardins de l’Europe, 1845 (Flora of greenhouses and gardens of Europe).

12. Helianthus multiflorus – Sunflower

This is a cultivated ornamental sunflower. The painting is from William Curtis’s, The Botanical Magazine 1794.

13. Beautiful Sunflower Sketch

This illustration of a big sunflower is from Charlotte Yonge’s vintage fruit and vegetable prints.

14. Black & White Sunflower and Bees

Painting from the Rijksmuseum by Albert Hemelman.

Art Nouveau Sunflowers

Sunflowers are popular in Art Nouveau because their bold, radiant shapes perfectly embody the movement’s focus on natural beauty and organic forms. Their vibrant, sun-like appearance adds a touch of nature’s elegance and energy to the art. Plus, sunflowers’ flowing lines and intricate details align seamlessly with Art Nouveau’s signature style, making them a favourite subject for artists who blend the natural world with decorative art.

15. Bees and beehive in art

16. Eugène Grasset Poster

Eugène Grasset, a Swiss-born artist, was a true Renaissance man of the Art Nouveau era. He seamlessly blended his graphic design, illustration, and stained glass talents. Known for his distinctive, nature-inspired motifs and meticulous craftsmanship, Grasset’s work uniquely bridged the worlds of commercial and fine art, influencing everything from posters to book illustrations.

Cover of the magazine “La Grande Dame. Revue mondaine cosmopolite”. Circa 1893.

Check out these other Art Nouveau Posters

17. August Calendar Sheet with Sunflowers

Anna Sipkema, an influential figure in the Art Nouveau movement, is renowned for her ability to weave intricate natural motifs into her textile and graphic designs.

18. August Sunflowers

Another August Art Nouveau calendar page featuring sunflowers. This is by  Theo van Hoytema, 1903.

Print 19: Verneuil Sunflowers 1

Check out the collection of Maurice Pillard Verneuil, art nouveau flowers on the blog

Print 20: Verneuil Sunflowers 2

Conclusion and Other Related Posts

You’ll find sunflower motives in many of the vintage plane art plates of Anton Sedar.

If you want to have a go at drawing your flowers, check out this easy tutorial on how to draw a sunflower.

Other impressively large flowers are the giant water lily, and chrysanthemums.

If you enjoyed this sunflower drawing collection, don’t forget to check out these other flora collections.

• Beautiful Botanical Rose Prints
• Vintage passion flower drawings
• Gorgeous Free Peony Paintings
• Vintage Tulip Paintings
• Beautiful Vintage Flower Pictures

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