Inspired by Birds

Many different artists have been inspired by birds, whether in flight or static. A recent article has followed the contributions made by John James Audubon, whose careful recordkeeping and artists’ eye allowed a wide audience to see many different American birds they might have never even known existed were it not for his travels. Another broke down the birds portrayed by Albrecht Durer, a name well-known for his work during the Northern Renaissance, featuring his work capturing the behavior of a tiny owl and another which carefully documented all the colors hidden on the underside of the wing of a blue roller.

Birds have provided inspiration for a wide variety of creations over the years. Interestingly, though, that inspiration has not always shown up in terms of the artist mimicking the exact features of birds. Rather, birds have been used symbolically in religious contexts to represent, for example, the Holy Spirit in Catholic art. Additionally, avian movement has inspired sculptors like Brancu?i to create majestic series like Bird in Space.

However, they were by no means the only artists who created entire pieces inspired by birds. Birds have been found depicted in ancient art all over the world, including cave paintings and carved figurines, with notable discoveries in France, Australia, and China, just to name a few.

Of course, when listing highlights of pieces featuring birds, one major starting place consistent through Western Art History is in the church. Birds represented many different things theologically, with birds playing a key role in many different stories throughout the various books of the Bible. However, in terms of art, birds often represented more than just a specific bird from a story. Often, birds were used to depict the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit played a key role in paintings depicting scenes such as the Annunciation or the Immaculate Conception, Christ’s Baptism, and many other portrayals of Mary, including her coronation as Queen of Heaven. These scenes key to Catholic doctrine were painted many different times by a variety of artists, and it is not uncommon to see at least one bird, or a dove specifically, representing the Holy Spirit.

More recently, an interesting example of art history inspired by birds in flight was Constantin Brancu?i’s Bird in Space series. The original sculpture was crafted in 1923. The idea behind the sculpture was to capture the motion of a bird in flight rather than the shape of the actual bird. Looking at it, it is understandable why many doubt it has any avian origins, but there is a certain grace to the curve of the pillar that does bring to mind the action of flying. The series consisted of seven marble sculptures and nine bronze casts. It was sold in 2005 for $27.5 million, at the time a record among large fine art for sale, sculptures specifically. Today, the various pieces of the series are on display all over the world, including the Met in New York City. Even though Brancu?i himself was French, his fine art in America is still renowned around the country.

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To learn more about the Bird in Space series, check out this fine art website:

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/486757