Alexander Wilson: Father of American Ornithology
Before he was eclipsed by the extensive oeuvre of the more artistically-talented John James Audubon, Alexander Wilson was making a name for himself in the early 18th century. Soon after his arrival from Scotland, Wilson, with few advantages and little else but a drive to better himself, fixed on the idea of producing the first comprehensive record of American birds. He recorded his impressions of America’s birds through drawings, prose and poetry, and in little more than seven years, published an important work of early American natural history. Not an artist by training or talent his drawings have an honest and natural realism. Individual essays on 293 birds were accompanied by 76 hand colored plates. This exhibition is accompanied by a beautifully illustrated catalog with an essay, call the museum to order: 805-682-4711
