Whimsical Birds

tanjabrittonwriter 60 Comments

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. 

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You, Light as a Cloud by Byeong Doo Moon, 2018

60 thoughts on “Whimsical Birds”

    • 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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  8. 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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  12. 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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  13. 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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  16. 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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  17. 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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  20. 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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