Wildlife art has been part of our heritage since time began. Residents of ancient Babylon could feast their eyes on Procession Street's wall of 60 life-size lions that led to the temple of Marduc. In Art Through The Ages, Helen Gardner tells us they were "glazed in yellow, brown and red against a background of turquoise or dark blue with a rosette motif on the border."

Dramatic examples of bison, reindeer, mammoth, boars, wolves and other beasts have been found in prehistoric caves. Carvings of more delicate wildlife, such as cranes and geese, decorate Egyptian tombs. Wildlife has been, and continues to be, a motivating subject in all art forms.

Writing about this subject in his introduction to Patricia Van Gelder's Wildlife Artists at Work, Richard G. Van Gelder, a Curator of Mammals, American Museum of Natural History, tells us that the ancients "venerated" animals and that their presence in art often had symbolic meanings. He continues that after a period where this art was neglected, the Renaissance brought its return and the advent of photography and later of film added to the cache.

One of the many American artists who found wild animals worthy of attention was the self-trained American primitive painter Edward Hicks. He produced some 100 versions of Peaceable Kingdom, based on the words from Isaiah that begin, "The wolf shall also dwell with the lamb." As the verse ends, "and a little child shall lead them," Hicks often included a child with the beasts.

Van Gelden's book documents the works and methods of ten contemporary American wildlife artists. One of these is Montana's Ken Carlson, who paints big game. Another is a resident of Alaska, Fred Machetanz, known for his superb paintings of polar bears in their natural habitat.

Photographers have also provided us with stunning examples. Marvelous pictures of animals, birds and even insects fill Time-Life's book, Photographing Nature. One, taken by Co Rentmeester in 1969, is of Japanese snow monkeys photographed in hot springs in the Japanese Alps.

Moving on to birds, there's no doubt that James Audubon stands at the head of the class. A Frenchman born in Haiti, he came to America at age 18. It took him ten years to achieve his goal of painting every kind of American bird.

Audubon's method would hardly please the ASPCA. He first shot, skinned and stuffed the bird, then posed it in a natural setting ­ sometimes fighting or hunting. His intent was to show birds realistically rather than romantically.
Audubon's famous The Birds of America, published in England in 1827-38, sold for $100. Today, the price would be $5 million or more. Fortunately, less expensive copies have been published. My 1939 edition is by the MacMillan Company.

Birds have always attracted artists. Another painter from Van Gilder's book, Roger Tory Peterson, is known for his Field Guides to Birds. Drawings for the first edition were made in 1933. Peterson worked in watercolor and acrylic. I especially like Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, (1978). The artist was also a well-known photographer.

The German artist Paul Klee painted Landscape with Yellow Birds in 1932. It's noted for the visual elements of "line, shape, light and color."

Finally, we come to fish and fowl. The chapter on underwater photography in Time-Life's book reproduces Douglas Faulkner's Jellyfish & Sunlight (1969). Much as I hate the species, I couldn't stop looking at this photograph.

Dolphins, whales and sharks provide grist for the art of Richard Ellis, who is also a writer. His Book of Sharks, (Grosset & Dunlap, 1976), includes drawings, photographs and paintings. In 1980, A Book On Whales, published by Alfred A. Knopf, followed.

As for fowls, they seem to have come to artistic life via folk art. Artists like Grandma Moses included them in barnyard scenes.

Also, like other wildlife, fish and fowl have been fashioned into objets d'art. An example: the pottery roosters made to order by Charlie West of Gillsville, Ga., were recently featured in a Southern Living article. Statuary, home decorating pieces and materials include all manner of wildlife.

As a closing note, the Internet lists both past and contemporary wildlife artists with examples of their works.

The Challenge by Robert Bateman
www.robertbateman.ca

Mating Game by Robert Bateman.
www.robertbateman.ca