Bananas (1904)

Ellen Isham Schutt (1873-1955) was an American botanical illustrator known for her detailed and accurate depictions of fruits, particularly apples and bananas. Born in Arlington, Virginia, she worked with the United States Department of Agriculture from 1904 to 1914, creating a collection of pomological watercolors that are now part of the USDA National Agricultural Library. From 1914 to 1915, she collaborated with the Department of Pomology at the University of California, where she produced watercolors for classroom use and demonstration purposes, illustrating a variety of conditions including cold storage, core rot, injury damage, and moth damage. Her work, which often showed fruits in two views, has been widely used in educational and scientific contexts. Schutt's contributions to botanical illustration have left a lasting impact on the field.