The idea for this painting by Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald (1890–1956), which takes as a subject a begonia sitting on a windowsill with a view to the wooded backyard behind his house, may have derived from a 1943 photograph. The Little Plant combines elements of both still life and landscape in a single picture. With its harmonious balance of realism and abstraction as well as beautiful colour and design elements, The Little Plant may be considered one of FitzGerald’s greatest achievements in paint. Here, the exuberant growth of the flowering plant indoors is counterpoint to the animated energy of the thick screen of trees outside.