8/12/2011
What the Forgotten Manuscripts Tell Us
Was Audubon a visionary conservationist or a heartless sport-killer of birds? In this lunch program, author Daniel Patterson discusses recently recovered manuscripts that provide a new understanding of Audubon’s conservationism. John James Audubon’s Journal of 1826, edited by Patterson, is on sale in Museum Store. Order box lunches by calling 409.886.2787, ext. Museum Store. Book signing.
 
Daniel Patterson
John James Audubon (1785-1851), artist
William Home Lizars (1788-1859), engraver
Great American Cock Male
1826, engraving on paper, hand-colored,
37 x 25.5 inches
For The Birds of America
91.100.402
When people learn that the creator of the magnificent folio plates of The Birds of America killed many thousands of birds, they often condemn him as a murderous sport-killer. Others, however, continue to defend him as an early conservationist visionary preparing future Americans to preserve bird species. Unfortunately, the published record of his life and thought is rife with contradictions and inconsistencies. Recently recovered manuscripts, however, show that, while he was not the environmental saint some have tried to make him be, he was also not the heartless monster others have come to believe. Audubon had a surprisingly visionary conservationist ethic, but previous representations of it have oversimplified the reality and occasionally caused us to look in the wrong places. This new understanding of Audubon’s particular conservationism makes him much more relevant to our discussions today of how humans should live in the natural environment.
About Daniel Patterson
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