John James Audubon, Smew or White Nun

   If you are a frequent visitor, you know I enjoy mixing  up the selections to present a wide variety of paintings. When John James Audubon (1785-1851) created  Smew or White Nun, his reasons were far different from most artists.  Audubon was foremost an ornithologist, so his purpose was to simply record nature, leaving little personal imprint.  But, whatever his purpose, Audubon's paintings, (later, prints), did mark them as uniquely Audubon.
   The difficulty in painting any living thing is to make it look alive.  I have know talented artists who have painted stuffed birds and their abilities are good enough so the animals look like dead, stuffed birds.  Audubon took another path.  He shot the ducks then wired them in the chosen position to paint.  Most were in watercolor, often in many layers and sometimes gouache, or pastels were added.  The paintings were quite large, all done so the birds were life size.
    Smew or White Nun is very dramatic. The ducks are caught in motion, and while there is no doubt as to the double center of attention, the surrounding landscape draws us into the setting.  As in previous weeks, here again we see a lighted horizon indicating it is either sun rise or sunset.  Heavy clouds and moving water indicate air movement.  The cliffs are a real question, rough and cold with only a glimmer of sunlight to our right to warm the image.  Notice the number of colors in those rolling clouds and the skill used in the transparent water.   Obviously, Audubon's major attention has been creating exact and natural white merganser ducks, but his carefully constructed composition and setting display his artistic concerns and ability. 
   The New York Historical Society holds all 435 preparatory watercolors from Birds of America. This is number 347.   The book was printed between 1827 - 38.
   Make Art a part of your life, it's a beautiful thing to do.
   


Comments

  1. Char HarguthJuly 9, 2020 at 8:34 AM

    I am amazed at the amount of art produced by Audubon in his lifetime. He was meticulous with detail but additionally he seemed to add personality to his bird paintings. He also placed them in an appropriate environment, with a pleasing composition that draws you in. I admire all his work and I envy his passion. I was happy to see one of his original books of prints at the MN Marine Museum. It is fortunate that so much of his work is reproduced and available to bird enthusiasts and environmentalists. I'm a fan!!

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