‘A Parliament of Owls’ gathers at Natural History Museum
Great horned owl
Johann Leonhard Frisch, “Vorstellung der Vogel in Teutschland (Representations of the Birds of Germany), Berlin, hand-colored engraving, 1733-63.
“Johann Leonhard Frisch was a theologian, naturalist and philologist.
“His first great German color-plate book, ‘Vorstellung der Vogel,’ featured European and exotic birds including parrots drawn from the family collection of preserved specimens. The birds were divided into 12 classes with more than 300 figures . . . The illustrations seem unsophisticated and even amusing, but there is a unique charm in the expressive and confident drawing. Frisch’s sturdy owls are in a class by themselves for the various techniques employed to portray the plumage with dots, dashes and criss-crosses.”
Prideaux John Selby, “Illustrations of British Ornithology,” London, hand-colored engraving, 1821-1834.
“Born into a wealthy aristocratic family, Prideaux John Selby spent his boyhood pursuing his interests in natural history on his family’s estate. Educated at Oxford, he matured into the life of a gentleman naturalist with a” passion for ornithology … Selby’s work is underrated, as he was a conscientious and painstaking artist. His drawings have an austere beauty. Every feather is clearly visible, and details of the large flight feathers and the softer plumage stand out in immaculate precision.”
A group of owls is called a “parliament.”
Who-o-o- knew?
Linda Miller, for one. She is curator of the John and Peggy Maximus Gallery at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, where she has arranged “A Parliament of Owls,” a display of original antique prints tracing 300 years of owl illustrations.
“Owls have been popular subjects throughout the recorded history of many cultures. Prominent members of the avian family, owls have been thought to possess wisdom, a sense of mystery and solitude,” said Ms. Miller, who wrote the information that accompanies each image in the exhibit that is on view through Feb. 5. (Her writing accompanies each image that is being published with this story.)
Eleazar Albin, “A Natural History of Birds,” London, hand-colored engraving, 1731-1738.
“Artist and author Eleazar Albin produced a three-volume illustrated history of birds in the early 18th century. His field drawings were etched onto small copper plates. They set the standard for the ‘bird and branch’ style of illustration. Albin’s lengthy descriptions are charming in their detail listing weight and size, feather structure, stomach contents, nesting habits; and instructions for keeping caged birds.”
Mark Catesby, “The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands,” London, hand-colored engraving, 1731-1743.
“During two extended stays in the American Colonies, the young Englishman, Mark Catesby, made a survey of the plants and animals he encountered while collecting for patrons back home. He became adept at field observation and made careful notations on such things as plumage, diet and migratory habits of North American birds and portrayed them more naturally than before. He made drawings of the ‘curiosities’ not seen before by English naturalists.”
John Gould, “The Birds of Europe,” London, hand-colored lithograph.
“John Gould was the leading publisher of ornithological books in Victorian England, possessing both an entrepreneurial personality and a keen interest in birds. Most were imperial folios, depicting birds in their full size. He drew rough sketches which were refined and translated into lithographs, first by his wife, Elizabeth, and then by a succession of talented artists including Lear and Josef Wolf.”
“Their striking features lend themselves to a variety of interpretations. A skilled artist was able to manifest a bird’s special character — its form, markings and coloring — in a way that a verbal description alone could not.
“These images by important French, English, German, Dutch, Italian, and American artists fascinate us with their range and diversity, from crude and eccentric to fully realized and naturalistic,” said Ms. Miller. “Seeing them displayed together invites comparison of how they’ve been portrayed over the centuries.”
email: mmcmahon@newspress.com
FYI
“A Parliament of Owls” is on view through Feb. 5 in the Maximus Gallery at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol Road, Santa Barbara. For more information, visit www.sbnature.org.
