Ornithophilia seems to be as old as human consciousness itself. Ever since we have had the faculty to wrap our thoughts into words, we have expressed our fascination and even love for creatures who are in their element not only on land, but also in the water and sky. Their presence across a vast range of habitats, their ability to take to the air, their myriad shades, shapes, and sizes, as well as their nearly preternatural gift to create sublime sounds have made them the favored subjects not only of composers, poets, and painters, but of sculptors alike.
Here are some of their whimsical bird creations I have been touched by.
Ornithophilie scheint so alt zu sein wie das menschliche Bewußtsein. Seit wir das Vermögen erwarben, unsere Gedanken in Worte zu fassen, haben wir unsere Faszination, wenn nicht sogar Liebe, für Kreaturen ausgedrückt, die nicht nur auf dem Land, sondern auch im Wasser und im Himmel in ihrem Element sind. Ihre Präsenz in einer Reihe von Lebensräumen, ihre Fähigkeit, sich in die Lüfte zu schwingen, ihre zahlreichen Farben, Formen, und Formate sowie ihre schier übernatürliche Gabe, unvergleichliche Töne hervorzubringen, hat sie nicht nur zu Lieblingen von Komponisten, Dichtern und Malern, sondern auch von Plastikern gemacht.
Hier sind einige ihrer skurrilen Vogelkreationen, die mich berührt haben.
To enlarge a photo, click on it.
Zum Vergrößern, das Bild bitte anklicken.
tanja britton 
Wonderful. Your photos brought a smile to my lips on a miserable, rain-soaked day in NZ. Birds, and birdsong, bring joy in all sorts of ways. Thank you for sharing. 😊
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Thank you kindly. I thought you left all the rain behind on the North island! ☔ 😊
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Sehr schöne Kunstwerke, liebe Tanja 😊
Liebe Grüße, Brigitte
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Ich danke Dir, liebe Brigitte. Du hattest recht, Dein Kommentar war im Spam. Keine Ahnung, was da mal wieder passiert ist.
Euch noch eine gute Woche.
Ganz herzliche Grüße,
Tanja
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Hello Tanja,
These are some amazing sculptures! Me too – this made my day. Thank you for sharing!
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That’s nice to know, Takami. Thank you! 😊
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Ein schöne Auswahl. Das oberste Foto hat mich zum Grinsen gebracht. Toll.
LG Jürgen
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Es freut mich sehr, daß Dir die Auswahl gefallen hat, lieber Jürgen. Das oberste ist vielleicht auch mein Lieblingsvogel, besonders, da sich seine Flügel über den ganzen Balkon erstreckt haben. Toll, was sich manche Künstler ausdenken.
Herzliche Grüße,
Tanja
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That last sculpture is pretty impresive!
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Thank you, Brian. It’s at least 30 to 40 feet tall, and was made by a local artist, who passed away a few years back. Starr Kempf was known for his colossal metal statues.
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Those are wonderful whimsical yard and house decorations. Nice idea to capture them in images, Tanja.
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Thank you, Steve, I am glad you enjoyed these fun creations. Whenever I recognize certain recurring themes in my photos, I like to organize them into blog posts.
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Da waren viele talentierte Künstler am Werk!
Viele Grüsse
Christa
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Genauso habe ich das auch gesehen, liebe Christa. Ich bin immer wieder erstaunt, was frau alles so finden kann, wenn sie nur die Augen offen hält.
Herzlichst,
Tanja
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Du sagst es…man/frau muss die Augen offen halten!
Viele Grüsse
Christa
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Ich mag diese Blech bzw Metallskulpturen . Ich habe selbst einige in meinem Garten stehen. Bevorzuge dabei die Teile mit Rostbelag. Du zeigst hier eine schöne Zusammenstellung .
Gruß Werner.
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Sie sind anscheinend sehr beliebt, besonders in Deutschland, wo ich die meisten dieser schrägen Vögel eingefangen habe. Es freut mich, daß Dir meine Auswahl gefällt, lieber Werner, vielen Dank.
Liebe Grüße,
Tanja
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Love ’em! That last one is mighty impressive.
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Thank you, Laurie. This last one was created by a local artist, Starr Kempf, now late. It is about 30 to 40 feet tall.
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Perfect for my garden. 😉
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You would have to oil it regularly, as it rotates around the stem in the wind, otherwise your neighbors might take issue with its creaking. 🙂
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So much fun! I like the owl the best 🙂
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Thank you, Melissa. The owl was really impressive, as its wings spanned the entire deck in front of a house. I have never seen anything like it again.
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Nor have I. It sure provides a welcome!
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This is a change of pace for you. Over how long a period were you storing up images to have enough variety for a post?
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You think so, Steve? I have, on occasion, presented collections of murals and other artistic creations.
I took the featured photo (the owl spreading its wings across the deck ) in November 2016, and all the other since then.
After rummaging through hundreds, if not thousands, of photos searching for some to fit a theme when I first started out, I have started to keep separate folders, and I try to put a copy of a photo if it fits right after I take it. It saves a lot of time.
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If you’re using a Macintosh, you can make aliases of a file and put the aliases in different folders. For example, an alias for each of the pictures in this post could have gone into a humor folder, a sculpture folder, etc. Double-clicking an alias opens the original file, wherever it is (as long as the disk it’s on is currently mounted). One advantage of an alias over an actual copy is that an alias is just a pointer and takes up almost no storage space on your hard drive. Another advantage is that if you edit the original, all the aliases will link to the updated file. With actual copies, you’d have to find and update each one.
I don’t know Windows but I assume it has the equivalent of aliases.
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That sounds ingenious, Steve, but as you can conclude from my response, too ingenious for me. I had never even heard about aliases in this context, but will try to do a little research. Thank you.
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I see that what Apple calls an alias,
https://etc.usf.edu/techease/mac/files-sharing/what-is-an-alias-and-how-do-i-create-one/
Microsoft calls a shortcut,
https://www.reviversoft.com/blog/2013/09/from-alias-to-shortcut/
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Thank you for the links, Steve! I have never worked with a Mac, so I appreciate the translation. 🙂
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You’re welcome. I didn’t know which platform you work on, so I included links to articles about both. If you’ll allow a bit of sarcasm from someone who grew up in New York (aren’t all New Yorkers sarcastic?), I’ll add that you’ve worked on a Mac without knowing it because Microsoft created Windows by stealing every feature that the Macintosh operating system had.
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I guess I had heard that at some point in the past, Steve. Does that make me felon, for using stolen material? 🙂
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Whether you’re a felon depends on your convictions.
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😸
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Hallo Tanja, schmunzelnd schaue ich mir die Fotos an, wie herrlich! Sehr gut gefällt mir the wader on the table. Looks like a redshank, but difficult to tell without the red legs. 🙂
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Thank you much, es freut mich, Dich zum Schmunzeln gebracht zu haben. I think the artist had a snipe in mind when he created this wader, when it was first put up in downtown Colorado Springs, there was an article in the newspaper about it. Incidentally, someone stole it, and threw it away, but a jogger found it. It has had an exciting life!
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Was für eine schöne Sammlung, liebe Tanja,
und eine erfreulich kreative Darstellungsvielfalt.
Mit gefällt der kupferne Hahn besonders gut, gleichwohl haben alle Vögel eine faszinierende charakterstarke Wirkung.
Beschwingte Grüße von mir zu Dir 🙂
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Dankeschön, liebe Ulrike. Den stolzen Hahn habe ich übrigens in Deutschland gefunden, weiß aber nicht mehr genau wo. Er hat mich an die arme Witwe Bolte erinnert. 😦
Ich bin auch immer wieder begeistert, wie kreativ viele Menschen sind, und dankbar, daß sie ihre Kunst mit uns anderen teilen.
Sei herzlich gegrüßt,
Tanja
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Afternoon, Tanja. I especially like the one in the bottom left corner. Kind of a dinosaur I guess. I get the feeling that a whole lot is going on inside its brain.
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Thank you, Neil. I think you are right. And somehow I have a feeling that it spells trouble. 🙂
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These birds are fantastic fun Tanja!
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Thank you, Liz, I thought so, too. Once I started to pay attention, I noticed similarly fun sculptures in many places. 😊
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By the way, Liz, I have been thinking about sharing a link to a post by a British blogger, who is currently visiting N.Z. with his wife. I thought you might find it interesting. No need to respond:
https://newzealandplatypus.wordpress.com/2019/09/22/walking-on-the-wild-side/
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That’s funny.. I saw his comment on your post and found his blog for his NZ trip so I’d already followed him a short while before your message came through. Great minds think alike haha 🙂
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That’s great, Liz. You might know some of the places they are visiting.
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I especially liked that wader on the table, too. My first thought was of our yellowlegs, although the bill seems a little long. Of course, it’s a wonderful representation of waders of every sort, and isn’t meant to reproduce a particular bird exactly. I enjoyed the variety of images you collected, too. I do the same thing: getting an idea for a post and then adding images as I go. I read Steve’s comment about aliases, and was intrigued. I’d never heard of such a thing. Of course, I still can’t figure out Lightroom, so I doubt I could figure out the aliases, either — if Windows even has such a feature!
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I agree, Linda, these creations don’t always have to be anatomically correct, or represent one particular species. One of the beauties of being an artist is being creative.
You might want to take another look at the comments–Steve has added links to explanations of both aliases, as well as the Microsoft equivalent, shortcuts.
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I use shortcuts all the time. I’m still not sure aliases and shortcuts work in the same way, though. When I have an image in several different files, and alter the original, those changes don’t apply to copies in other files. Of course, there might be a trick to it I don’t know. I’ve put the issue on my list of things to think about later!
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I haven’t had a change to look at the links yet, but will do so. I have NOT been using shortcuts, and they might save some space on the hard drive, so I might try them.
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You perfectly described the main reasons artists—and people in general—are drawn to birds. I think the greatest attraction you mentioned (and the one underscored with envy) is the perceived freedom of flight. At one time or another, I believe everyone has dreamed of being a bird.
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Thank you, Andy.
Why am I not surprised at your fascination with birds’ ability to fly? 😊 But in contrast to the vast majority of humankind, you have acquired the enviable ability to take to the air (almost) as if you were one yourself. 🦅
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congratulations to your fantastic birds!
Hi Tanja, have a nice w.e. 🙂
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I’m glad you enjoyed them, thank you. I wish you a good week also.
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Thank you for sharing! These are all so tree and yard inspiring for me. What an owl face!!❤️☕️😎☕️❤️
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Thank you for your enthusiastic response. You are right, they would great in your yard, so I hope you will have fun with them. 😊
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For sure!
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Tanja, I so love how you encourage us, through both words and images, to pay attention at every level: high and low, grace and sadness, natural and built, large and small. Your blog is always fresh and inspiring. Keep collecting those photos and thoughts, no matter how you end up storing them!
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Thank you for your supportive and encouraging words, dear Andrea. I always appreciate a visit and comment from you. 😊
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I love these, Tanja! Definitely cute, adorable, and whimsical! 🙂
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I’m glad you enjoyed them, Donna. I’m grateful for the creators of these fun sculptures, and for their owners for sharing them with the rest of us.
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