Art of the Bird

Carolina Parakeet John James Audubon

“Never give up listening to the sounds of the birds.”

The symbolic use of birds in art was historically a way for artists to portray flight, hopes and dreams, the linking of earth and sky, and secrets of other worlds brought to earth by winged beings.

Less symbolic and more representational portrayals of birds in nature begins to be seen more often in both Eastern and Western artworks in the 1700s. The pinnacle of very accurate depiction of birds in artistic compositions came in the early 1800s in the great works of John James Audubon, establishing the definitive standard for bird painting. Audubon went beyond portraying anatomical illustration by creating dramatic and beautiful works of art. Both his life and art were extraordinary, leaving a legacy that is still significant and influential today.

Audubon’s magnum opus, The Birds of America, was the culmination of over 14 years spent observing and drawing. In th…