1840
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Birds of Philippines is a 1840 ink by John Gerrard Keulemans, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This drawing shows two brown birds standing near tall reeds. One bird is larger, with a long neck and striped belly, while the smaller one has a rounder body and shorter legs. The background is soft, with light blue and green tones to mimic a wet, grassy area. The artist focused on small details, like the birds’ feathers and the texture of the reeds. This kind of careful drawing was common in old science books to help people study nature. If you like this style, look up lithography to see how artists made prints like this.
Johannes Gerardus Keulemans (8 June 1842 – 29 March 1912) was a Dutch bird illustrator. For most of his life he lived and worked in England, illustrating many of the best-known ornithology books of the nineteenth century.
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