One difference, however, between Audubon and his contemporary, Alexander Wilson, is that Audubon portrayed his ornithological subject matter at life size.Ī second difference is that Audubon posed his birds in nature, conducting activities that he had either imagined or witnessed. Simple enough to describe, his process was to kill, clean, position, and paint. Artistically and professionally, Audubon struggled to gain acceptance into the strict company of American and British scientific academies.Īlthough Audubon’s technique of moving nature from the outdoors to the canvas was well within the realm of the acceptable in the early nineteenth century, today his process would be anathema to the society that now bears his name.Īccording to Audubon biographer William Souder, “At one time or another, Audubon killed specimens of all but a handful of the more than four hundred species of birds he ultimately painted, plus most of the quadrupeds of North America, from squirrels to alligators to moose.” A true enigma, John James Audubon was not even his name until he came to America in 1803 to look after his father’s business.Īudubon, born Jean Rabin in Saint-Domingue in 1785, was something of a liar from the beginning he told others falsely and often that he studied painting with Jacques-Louis David.

Today, his drawings and paintings of American wildlife are respected worldwide, and his name is synonymous with environmental concern and wildlife preservation. He served jail time for bankruptcy and knifed a man in Kentucky over ownership of a steamboat. With friends, he buried a rat in a pot, its tail protruding from the dirt, and gave the complete ensemble to another friend, claiming it was a rare flower. He killed thousands of birds and cruelly experimented on many animals, including catfish, a bald eagle, and his very own hunting dog. 1841 / National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution transfer from the National Gallery of Art gift of the Avalon Foundation through the generosity of Ailsa Mellon Bruce, 1951 John James Audubon / Unidentified artist / Oil on canvas, c.

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