Birds

This richly illustrated volume explores the enduring presence of birds in art and culture, tracing their meanings across centuries, styles, and geographies. Moving between admiration and exploitation, symbolism and science, the catalog examines how birds have shaped human imagination, from emblems of freedom and transcendence to objects of control, collection, and study.

Anchored by Carel Fabritius’s iconic The Goldfinch, the publication unfolds as both an art historical journey and a cultural reflection. It brings together works spanning from the Renaissance to contemporary art, placing Old Masters in dialogue with modern and living artists. Through this juxtaposition, birds emerge not merely as subjects, but as mirrors of human values, desires, and contradictions.

Contributions shaped in collaboration with historian Simon Schama lend the catalog a narrative depth that moves beyond conventional exhibition documentation. The book reflects on the fragile boundary between nature and culture, asking what our fascination with birds reveals about the way we see, use, and idealize the natural world.

Visually compelling and intellectually engaging, this catalog offers a wide-ranging perspective on one of art’s most persistent and poetic motifs, inviting readers to reconsider birds not only as images, but as carriers of meaning across time.