New York, N.Y. - A spectacular selection of 47 original
watercolor drawings by John James Audubon is on view in "Birds of
Central Park: Audubon's Watercolors" at the New-York Historical
Society. This exhibit is a rare opportunity for visitors to the
historical society to see so many of Audubon's original
watercolors at one viewing. These drawings are the life-size
originals from which were made the exquisite prints, also life
size, of The Birds of America published by Robert Havell,
Jr, in London.
The New-York Historical Society has mounted the show in
celebration of the 150th anniversary of its neighbor, Central
Park. The dramatic images depict birds that are full-time
residents or migratory birds seen in Central Park that Audubon
made for The Birds of America, published between 1827 and
1838. The historical society acquired the works by subscription
from Audubon's widow Lucy Bakewell Audubon in 1863, 12 years
after the artist's death. That the originals have survived in
pristine condition, except for two that are missing, is
remarkable.
Normally the New-York Historical Society displays only four of
the watercolors each quarter because of their fragility. But, in
honor of the anniversary of the park, which is one of the most
important natural bird sanctuaries in North America, the
customary number has multiplied more than tenfold.
John James Audubon was an extraordinarily talented self-taught
artist and knowledgeable naturalist who began his watercolor
series in 1820. The work was his passion. While his prints
themselves are compelling in their precision and beauty, the
original images are extraordinarily beautiful in color and form
and they are singularly rare. Meticulously detailed, the
watercolors are rendered crisply using such innovative media as
adhesive, overglazes, pastels, egg white, ink, collage, metallic
pigment, pulverized graphite, chalk and gouache. The results are
a masterful blending of fine art and exact science.
Before making any painting, Audubon painstakingly observed the
birds in their habitat, sometimes for days in the wild, sometimes
even for decades, which resulted in a seldom-seen ornithological
and botanical clarity. Audubon's observations enabled him to
capture the birds in glorious detailed life-size images. He
portrayed the birds, male and female, young and old, in habitat
-- eating, fighting and in flight -- using high quality wove
watercolor paper from three English paper mills J Whatman, J
Whatman Turkey Mill and Turkey Mills J Whatman in double elephant
size (391/2 by 291/2 inches), elephant size (23 by 28 inches) and
medium size (171/2 by 22 inches). He carried the paper into the
fields and forests of early Nineteenth Century America where he
observed the birds and drew them, later sending them to Havell in
England for engraving. After Havell completed the copper plates
in 1839, Audubon shipped the watercolors back to the United
States where they were exhibited publicly for the last time at
the Lyceum of Natural History in New York.
Roberta J.M. Olson, the associate curator of drawings at the
New-York Historical Society, describes Audubon's incredible sense
of the materials and unerring sense of quality, which, she said,
resulted in very little degradation in the quality of the
watercolors. The originals bear Audubon's and his engraver's
extensive notations and much can be learned from them. She also
describes the artist as a humanist and an ecologist, noting that
in his journals he rued the fact that he saw fewer Carolina
parakeets in one spot than he had seen on previous visits. On a
practical note, Olson describes the trimming and tack marks left
on the originals from Audubon's traveling exhibits when he was
trying to raise money for their publication.
According to Olson, Audubon's primary goal was to make the birds
look alive and his success is indisputable. Olson notes that
Audubon made several thousand strokes of graphite over watercolor
and pastels to define one bird's tail feathers.
What might an original Audubon watercolor fetch if it came to
market?
Kenneth Newman of The Old Print Shop in New York said he could
not even hazard a guess but the price for an original Audubon
watercolor would probably be "whatever you could imagine." Newman
said he has seen the originals several times when they have been
on view in the past. "Always a treat," he said, "Extraordinary!"
The Old Print Shop has handled nine sets of Havell's The Birds
of America over the years since the shop was founded in 1898.
Audubon dealer Julian Taverner of Haley & Steele in Boston
said, "The original work is for sale so infrequently that it is
difficult to say with any accuracy. Any watercolor for The
Birds of America must be considered a treasure. One could see
prices for one watercolor in the hundreds of thousands, if not
more. Audubon is such an icon of American natural history of art
that there would be heavy competition for such a piece." Taverner
describes the artist using the terms "genius" and "enigma." He
has written extensively on Audubon. His latest book just out,
The Birds of the Northeast, is annotated with Audubon's
comments on the images.
Stuart P. Whitehurst, head of Skinner's books and manuscripts
department thought for a minute about the prospect of an original
Audubon watercolor for sale, "Jeez-o-Pete!" he said. "If a snowy
owl print brings $80,000 to $100,000, just think what an original
watercolor might fetch!" He, too, declined to cite figures.
The society also has a complete set of the original
double-elephant folio edition, of which about 220 were made,
bound in four volumes. Included among the images on view is a
comparison of Audubon's preparatory watercolor for "The House
Wren," along with the copper plate and the hand colored print of
the plate number 83 from the society's own volume. The
juxtaposition allows an overview of the gradations in the process
of creating just one image for Birds of America.
Audubon documents, books and other relevant objects are also on
view, including a monogrammed purse that Lucy Bakewell Audubon
sewed for her husband to hold the tip money for footmen and
doormen in his travels in the United State and Europe to sell
subscriptions for The Birds of America.
"Birds of Central Park: Audubon's Watercolors" remains on view
through February 15 at the New-York Historical Society, Two West
77th Street.
