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The Arts Intel Report

John James Audubon and His Birds of America

Feb 1 – Aug 1, 2024
Cromwell Rd, South Kensington, London SW7 5BD, United Kingdom

There are seven wonders of the world but there really should be an eighth: The Birds of America by John James Audubon. A book that illustrates close to half the bird species of North America, it consists of 435 plates that capture each species in its habitat, usually including both male and female, and sometimes chicks. The original images, rendered in watercolors and pastel crayon, were scaled to life size, so the original printed editions—published between 1828 and 1838—are huge. Extremely rare, they are known as the Double Elephant Folio. (Most of us know Audubon’s work through smaller editions.) In the realm of nature art, nothing quite compares to Audubon’s achievement. This exhibition explores the history of the book, shows how Audubon worked and how the plates were printed, and includes a portrait of Audubon by Lance Calkin, full-size engravings, plus ephemera and taxidermy specimens. —Laura Jacobs