Each year, the grace, beauty and allure of the bird is captured during the large-scale juried exhibition, Birds in Art, in which the artwork of more than 100 artists from across the world are selected to be a part of the show. Held at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin, beginning September 12, the show takes collectors through the avian aesthetic in a variety of mediums, including paintings, sculpture and graphics. Depictions of the bird range from chilling renderings of birds of prey, to white pelicans reminiscent of time spent at the beach, to charming blue jays and spectacled weavers. Precautionary measures for COVID-19 are also in place, which means several of the event’s staples, such as the opening-day festivities, Master Artist Talk and Artists in Action, have been suspended.
Leslie Pratt-Thomas, It Was This Big, oil on linen, 30 x 40"
The 2020 Master Artist is wildlife artist Timothy David Mayhew, based in the Four Corners area of New Mexico. Mayhew, who says celebrated artist Bob Kuhn is one of his biggest influences, creates oil paintings and natural-chalk drawings of a variety of northwestern wildlife and landscapes, but birds are undoubtedly the focus, specifically aquatic-dwelling creatures. Mayhew captures the intricate complexity of reflections in the water, the chill of the cold during snow-geese migration, and the energetic interactions of the chukar partridge.
Amy Webb, Red Wing Marsh, acrylic on canvas, 20 x 20". Photo by Denny Moers.
Timothy David Mayhew, Dune, oil on Belgian linen, 12 x 16"
Also included in the Birds in Art exhibition are artists Amy Webb and Leslie Pratt-Thomas.
“I was inspired to paint It Was This Big, while on a morning walk when the light on the wood storks’ wings seemed to glow,” Pratt-Thomas says of her oil included in the show, which depicts three storks stretching their wings near the water’s edge. “There also seemed to be a unique sense of emotion conveyed between the birds in that moment,” she adds.
Collectors should visit www.lywam.org for updates on what to expect for the event, as well as information on necessary items to bring. The Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum’s extended opening-weekend hours will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, September 12, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, September 13. The exhibition remains on view through November 29. —
Birds in Art
When: September 12-November 29, 2020
Where: Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, 700 N. 12th Street, Wausau, WI 54403
Information: (715) 845-7010, www.lywam.org
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