Ode to Audubon- American Flamingo

The story

Living in Galveston, Texas I became interested in learning about the shorebirds there by accident. That area is right under a byway for many migratory birds, so birding in that area is taken very seriously. The enthusiasts visiting for that reason rubbed off on me! We also visited the Audubon Museum in Key West, and I was fascinated with his life sized watercolors compiled in his famous book, The Birds of America (1827). I have a small portfolio of these prints in my own collection. I wanted to pay homage to him and recreate these in my unique way, in paper! The pieces in this series are largely the same composition and colors as the originals by Audubon. His writings give great detail about his discoveries on each bird, their habitat, eating, breeding, and migratory habits. Any combination of the five pieces in this series makes an interesting suite for any coastal bird lover!

“When the weather is calm, and a flood of light and heat is poured down upon nature by the genial sun, they are often, especially during the love season, seen rising in broad circles, flock after flock, until they attain a height of perhaps a mile, when they gracefully glide on constantly expanded wings, and course round each other, for an hour or more at a time, after which, in curious zigzags, and with remarkable velocity, they descend towards their beloved element, and settle on the water, on large sand-bars or on mangroves. It is interesting beyond description to observe flocks of Brown Pelicans thus going through their aerial evolutions.” John James Audubon