John James Audubon's Masterpiece Of American Art, The Birds Of America, On View In New Museum Exhibition

Feb 27 – May 31, 2015

HistoryMiami announces The Complete Audubon: The Birds of America exhibition, on view at the Museum’s expanded facility, which now includes the former Miami Art Museum (now Perez Art Museum Miami) building at the Miami-Dade Cultural Center. Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to view for the first time all 435 prints at HistoryMiami.

John James Audubon’s The Birds of America (1826–1838), considered a masterpiece of early American art, consists of 435 life-size prints depicting 457 species of North American birds in their natural environments. The Complete Audubon will feature the Museum’s Elephant Folio of The Birds of America, issued between 1826 and 1838. HistoryMiami acquired the folio in 1981 after a generous donation of stock from Mitchell Wolfson, Jr., made the purchase possible.

The Museum will arrange the prints as Audubon intended them to be seen, in their original order from print 1 to 435; the show will open with the Wild Turkey (print 1) and work its way to the final set of five prints, including the spectacular American Flamingo (print 431) and the improbable American Dipper (print 435).

“Besides the images of these birds being exquisite works of art, the exhibition examines Audubon’s life, the making of the folio, and its effect on art depicting nature and environmental history,” said Rebecca Smith, HistoryMiami’s Head of Special Collections and the exhibition’s curator.
In addition to the complete first edition of The Birds of America, the Octavo Edition will also be on view, with the seven volumes of this second edition displayed in cases. Each volume will be open to one of the hand-colored lithographs and, on a regular basis, a curator will turn the pages so that by the end of the exhibition all 500 lithographs will have been shown.
“Audubon was the country’s dominant wildlife artist for half a century and still sets the standard to which bird artists are measured today,” said Phillip M. Hudson III, Chairman of the HistoryMiami Board of Trustees.

In related programming, the Museum will present a conversation about All Things Audubon with writer, ornithologist, and conservationist Dr. James Kushlan, and antique print specialist and Audubon authority Joel Oppenheimer at 2 p.m., March 7. On Saturday, March 14, the Museum will offer a Family Fun Day: Birds of America day filled with free art activities, storytelling, and exhibition tours from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., sponsored by the Ford Motor Company Fund. Next, HistoryMiami will offer beginner and advanced illustration workshops, April 25 and May 16 at 1 p.m. Space is limited and pre-registration is required for these workshops. Register online at historymiami.org or call 305-375-1601.

When: February 27 – May 31, 2015
Where: HistoryMiami. 101 West Flagler Street, Miami, FL 33130
Admission: $8 for adults, $7 for seniors and students with ID, $6 for children 6-12, and free for members and children under 6. For more information, visit historymiami.org.

HistoryMiami
101 West Flagler Street
Miami, FL 33130
Ph: 305.375.1492
www.historymiami.org

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