Denler Gallery welcomes Berlin based artist Wiley Hoard
Nov. 29—Northwestern’s Denler Art Gallery is excited to present “The Audubon Effect,” a solo exhibition by the American-born, Berlin-based artist Wiley Hoard. The show presents five commissioned paintings based on the studies of John James Audubon’s Birds of North America, a group of monochromatic oil paintings, as well as an installation of Christmas ornaments.
Wiley Hoard: The Audubon Effect November 30–December 18 Artist Lecture: December 9, 5 p.m. Reception: December 9, 6–8 p.m. Free and open to the public
John James Audubon is celebrated today as one of history’s most trailblazing ornithologists. With paint, paper, and a gun in hand, he sought to illustrate and categorize all the birds in North America in an effort to create a comprehensive scientific catalogue.
At the time, ornithologists were making their studies either by copying dated illustrations from Asia or creating stiff, taxidermied models, which often altered the natural color of the once-living bird. Audubon’s approach was groundbreaking in the sense that he was able to meld scientific rigor with a palette of imagery that spoke to the public. Examples of such imagery are his striking depictions of flowers, which was what initially drew artist Wiley Hoard to his work.
