John James Audubon

American, 1785 - 1851

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French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter (1785–1851)

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Two rabbits, one white and one gray, lie on a grassy hill in this horizontal painting on paper. On our left, the white rabbit rests so its front paws face us, and it looks slightly off to our left. To our right, the gray rabbit takes up most of the picture with its head near the white rabbit and its tail nearly touching the right edge of the paper. Tiny pen and graphite strokes make up the individual hairs of the rabbits' fur and whiskers. The ground close to us is olive and earth green. Mountains are frosty teal-green in the distance under lavender-gray clouds streaking up and to our left against a blue sky. Two birds fly in the deep distance. Tiny writing in black ink in the top left corner spells "Leach" in the top left corner. A number 1 appears next to the gray rabbit’s head and a number 2 next to the white.
John James Audubon, Arctic Hare, c. 1841, pen and black ink and graphite with watercolor and oil paint on paper, Gift of E.J.L. Hallstrom, 1951.9.10

Arctic Hare

John James Audubon · c. 1841 · pen and black ink and graphite with watercolor and oil paint on paper ·  Accession ID  1951.9.10

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Salt Water Marsh Hen

John James Audubon · 1832 · lithograph in black ·  Accession ID  1965.9.1

A bird in flight with its hooked beak wide open, wings held high, holds a shimmering green and white fish in its talons in this vertical painting. The bird and fish fill the composition against a pale, hazy landscape. Both animals face our left in profile. The bird’s raised wings are dark brown, and the feathers on the underside of its left wing, closer to us, are cream white. Its tail is fanned and the feathers are striped with golden yellow against dark brown. The bird surges forward, to our left, its head low. The yellow eye we see is round and clear, and its dark beak curves to a sharp point over its protruding tongue. The head is striped with cream and brown, creating a mask-like effect. Powerful talons grip the fish, whose tail still dips in the water below. The fish’s mouth gapes and its eye, which is yellow around a black iris, is wide open in the gray and silver head. The top of the fish’s body is iridescent emerald green that fades to tan and parchment yellow along its belly. Light and dark speckles create a dotted pattern along the fish’s length. The body of water meets the horizon about a quarter of the way up the composition. The surface of the water is painted in sage green, golden tan, and pale pink. Cliffs in the distance are soft mauve purple under an aqua-blue sky filled with billowing clouds. White birds with black wingtips fly over the water in the distance.
John James Audubon, Osprey and Weakfish, 1829, oil on canvas on hardboard, Gift of Richard M. Scaife, 2005.32.1

Osprey and Weakfish

John James Audubon · 1829 · oil on canvas on hardboard ·  Accession ID  2005.32.1

John James Audubon, English Black Cocks, 1828, watercolor and gouache over graphite, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1985.64.71

English Black Cocks

John James Audubon · 1828 · watercolor and gouache over graphite ·  Accession ID  1985.64.71

John James Audubon, Farmyard Fowls, c. 1827, oil on canvas, Gift of E.J.L. Hallstrom, 1951.9.3

Farmyard Fowls

John James Audubon · c. 1827 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1951.9.3

John James Audubon, Hermit Thrush, 1820, black chalk, watercolor, and gouache over graphite, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1985.64.69

Hermit Thrush

John James Audubon · 1820 · black chalk, watercolor, and gouache over graphite ·  Accession ID  1985.64.69

John James Audubon, Blue Yellow Back Warbler, 1812, watercolor and gouache over graphite, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1985.64.70

Blue Yellow Back Warbler

John James Audubon · 1812 · watercolor and gouache over graphite ·  Accession ID  1985.64.70

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Puffin

John James Audubon · · lithograph ·  Accession ID  1951.9.25

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Towhe Bunting

John James Audubon · · lithograph in black ·  Accession ID  1951.9.27

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Sandwich Tern

John James Audubon · · lithograph in black ·  Accession ID  1951.9.28

Bibliography

1869

  • Audubon, Lucy Bakewell. The Life of John James Audubon. New York, 1869.

1897

  • Audubon, Maria R. Audubon and His Journals. 2 vols. New York, 1897.

1917

  • Herrick, Francis Hobart. Audubon the Naturalist: A History of His Life and Times. New York and London, 1917.

1978

  • Chancellor, John. Audubon, A Biography. London, 1978.

1982

  • Reynolds, Gary A. John James Audubon & His Sons. Exh. cat. Grey Art Gallery, New York, 1982.

1988

  • Ford, Alice. John James Audubon: A Biography. New York, 1988.

1993

  • Blaugrund, Annette, and Theodore H. Stebbins, Jr. John James Audubon: The Watercolors for the Birds of America. Exh. cat. The New-York Historical Society, New York, 1993.

  • Streshinsky, Shirley. Audubon: Life and Art in the American Wilderness. New York, 1993.

1996

  • Kelly, Franklin, with Nicolai Cikovsky, Jr., Deborah Chotner, and John Davis. American Paintings of the Nineteenth Century, Part I. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1996: 13-14.