Audubon S Masterpieces

Early in the 1800s John James Audubon conceived of the project of painting all the species of birds in North America. He realized his ambition with the publication of Birds of America. This pioneering work has become an undisputed classic. The 150 prints compiled here in Audubon's Masterpieces from the first Royal Octavo edition conclusively establish the breadth and depth of Audubon's Achievement. The son of a French naval officer and a Creole woman, Audubon was born in Haiti in 1785, educated in France and moved to his family's estate near Philadelphia in 1803. It was there that his love of birds and his desire to draw them became the driving force and consuming passion of his life. Audubon devoted his life to the single pursuit of accurately yet artistically capturing the intricate details and individual splendor of the birds of North America. The enduring popularity and relevance of his work attests to his success both as a scientist and an artist. Today, Audubon's name is synonymous with wildlife preservation, and he is recognized as one of the greatest artists of his time. The 150 prints in this book are known as being among the very best examples of Audubon artistry. From the Carolina Parrot, now sadly extinct, to the rare Whooping Crane and the more common blue birds and woodpeckers, Audubon's portrayals are among the finest examples of wildlife art in existence. This exquisite collection of plates represents Audubon's genius at its very height. Audubon's Masterpieces is without a doubt one of the most magnificent collections of bird prints every published.

This is the first biography of the father of descriptive ornithology, the author of American Ornithology or The Natural History of Birds Inhabiting the United States not given by Wilson,, an electee to the American Philosophical Society and the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, and last, Emperor Napoleon's nephew. Stroud, an independent scholar, uses archival sources, including unpublished letters in possession of the Bonaparte family, to tell the story of a man forced by the circumstances of his birth and by the liberality of his views to move from France, to the U.S., to Italy, and back to France. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Part fun- and information-filled almanac, part good book guide, the Children's Book-a-Day Almanac is a new way to discover a great children's book--every day of the year! This fresh, inventive reference book is a dynamic way to showcase the gems, both new and old, of children's literature. Each page features an event of the day, a children's book that relates to that event, and a list of other events that took place on that day. Always informative and often surprising, celebrate a year of literature for children with The Children's Book-a-Day Almanac.

This edition has 65 new images, making a total of 500. The original configurations were altered so that there is only one species per plate. The text is a revision of the Ornithological Biography, rearranged according to Audubon's Synopsis of the Birds of North America (1839).

Florida's amazing landscapes and fascinating wildlife were sources of inspiration for early naturalists seeking new horizons. Among them was John James Audubon. Elegant herons, acrobatic terns, endearing pelicans and colorful roseate spoonbills all feature among his beloved artwork. But Audubon was not the first nature artist inspired by Florida. Mark Catesby, an English country squire turned adventurer, helped introduce the wonders of Florida to a European audience in the 1700s. And William Bartram, a Pennsylvania Quaker, traveled south to explore the Florida wilderness, where he canoed across a lake full of alligators and lived to sketch the creatures. Author Chris Fasolino shares the stories of these artistic expeditions in a collection replete with gorgeous artwork that includes high-definition images of Audubon's rarely seen original paintings.

In the summer of 1833, John James Audubon, his son and several friends embarked on the schooner Ripley and sailed from Eastport, Maine to Nova Scotia to the St. Lawrence. Audubon kept a detailed diary describing the land, the sea, the vegetation, the people and, above all, the birds that he encountered. Many of the paintings he created along the way are considered his most beautiful and are reproduced here in Audubon's Wilderness Palette. Many of the birds represented here have become extinct or are threatened. With the strokes of his brush, Audubon has in many ways preserved a natural legacy, permitting those who view his paintings and engravings the opportunity to visit a world that has vanished.

A national treasure is celebrated in this landmark publication. The Birds of America is a monumental classic, but it has never been explored like this before. This important new volume presents all the dazzling watercolors that Audubon painted for these monumental engravings. We are familiar with the prints engraved by Robert Havell Jr., but Audubon’s Aviary illuminates the original masterpieces that were created by Audubon himself and tells the story behind their creation with fresh insights and engaging quotes from his writings. These powerful paintings—all newly photographed using state-of-the-art techniques—possess a startling immediacy, vibrancy, and fluidity that link natural history, art, and a respect for the environment. These watercolors transmit Audubon’s devotion to his craft with their inscriptions and layers of media wrought with a miniaturist’s attention to detail and their revolutionary compositions, which for the first time in history depicted all the birds life-size. Audubon is considered America’s first great watercolorist, introducing innovative approaches developed over a lifetime of study. Even judged alongside today’s technology, his dramatic tableaux remain some of the most spectacular natural history documents and visually arresting works of art ever produced.