约翰・詹姆斯・奥杜邦（John James Audubon，1785-1851年）是艺术家丶博物学家和着名的《美国鸟类图鉴》（The Birds of America）的创作者，这本鸟类图鉴被称作「美国国宝」，大众广泛认为他是美国第一位杰出的水彩画家。本书提供了奥杜邦艺术旅程与其人生戏剧相交织的独特探索，揭示了他如何研究过去和当代艺术家，创造出全新的作品。

本书带领读者重新发现奥杜邦的精湛开创的艺术水彩画。此外，还探讨了围绕这位传奇人物的争议，他是第一个在历史上准确地描绘了所有鸟类的真实大小，其中不乏至今已绝种的鸟类。

作者 Roberta J. M. Olson

是纽约历史学会的绘画策展人。她的着作包括：《奥杜邦的鸟类：〈美国鸟类图鉴〉的原始水彩画》（Audubon’s Aviary: The Original Watercolors for ‘The Birds of America’）。

REVIEW

“Audubon as Artist—as meticulously researched as it is spiritedly written—will completely revolutionize our understanding of Audubon's complicated legacy. Everyone seems to know Audubon these days; Olson, one of the leading art historians and museum curators working today, shows us how little we have in fact known. The first scholar to treat Audubon's desire to be admired both as an artist and an ornithologist with the seriousness it deserves, she elucidates the art that influenced him and the artistic techniques he cultivated to create what Cuvier rightly called the ‘greatest human monument to nature.’” -- Christoph Irmscher, distinguished professor of English at Indiana University, author of “The Poetics of Natural History” and coeditor of “Audubon at Sea”

“Although so much has been written about Audubon, Olson brings new and fresh insights into the life and work of the artist-naturalist. In Audubon as Artist, with her customary scholarly flair she presents the reader with a detailed and fascinating outline of Audubon’s development as an artist and the art that influenced him. This richly illustrated book brilliantly demonstrates how his awareness of European, Asian and even Indian painting was integrated into his own unique art. Audubon as Artist clearly shows that Audubon was much more than an illustrator of birds—he was America’s first great watercolourist and should be placed firmly within a wider artistic tradition.” -- Mark Glancy, curator of “Audubon’s Birds of America,” National Museums Scotland 2022 and touring

"This fresh look at the artistry of a great American painter and naturalist delivers delightful revelations with unrivaled authority. Outstanding!" -- Richard Rhodes, author of "John James Audubon: The Making of an American," and Pulitzer Prize laureate

"Olson provides a refreshingly new look at The Birds of America from an art-historical perspective with a deep background on its creation. Thoroughly researched, beautifully written, and sumptuously illustrated, this is a book all Audubon enthusiasts will want to own." -- Robert McCracken Peck, author of "The Natural History of Edward Lear," curator of art and artifacts at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.