Audubon Bien Edition Pl. 195, Towhe Bunting & Pl. 189, Song Sparrow | By Oppenheimer Editions

Name: Audubon Bien Edition Pl. 195, Towhe Bunting & Pl. 189, Song Sparrow | By Oppenheimer Editions
Brand: Joel Oppenheimer Inc
SKU: OEBI-195
Availability: InStock

$500.00

Oppenheimer Editions Fine Art Print | circa 2009 | Limited Edition of 200 | 39 ¼ x 26 ½ inches | Double-elephant folio

SKU: OEBI-195 Category: Bien Edition – Oppenheimer Editions Tags: Bien Edition, Birds, Birds of America, Double-Elephant Folio, John James Audubon, Oppenheimer Editions

The Oppenheimer Editions Audubon Bien Edition Pl. 195, Towhe Bunting & Pl. 189, Song Sparrow beautifully illustrates the stunning colors and dynamic compositions for which his work is known.

Published as a limited edition of 150, this print is embossed with the Oppenheimer Editions logo and printed with the finest quality archival pigments on rag watercolor paper. Allow yourself to be inspired by Audubon’s craftsmanship and appreciation for nature by welcoming this print into your home.

About the Bien Edition of the Birds of America

John James Audubon’s Birds of America is a highly influential work of American art and ornithological study. The Audubon prints feature detailed illustrations of North American bird species in their natural habitats, portrayed at life-size. Audubon spent two decades on this project, exploring the wilderness of America, gathering specimens, sketching birds, and meticulously documenting his observations.

Audubon’s illustrations are known for their remarkable detail and ability to capture the unique characteristics of each species. To ensure accuracy, he used various methods such as extensive field observation and referencing taxidermy specimens. He also developed a technique of wiring freshly caught birds to a gridded board, allowing him to position them realistically and depict them with precision in terms of scale, color, and movement.

In this modern edition, Audubon’s 2nd Edition of The Birds of America plates are masterfully recreated as modern fine art prints. All presented in full double-elephant folio size, the Bien Oppenheimer Edition of the Birds of America stands alone as the most impressive modern presentation of the original chromolithographs.

The Bien edition of the Birds of America was initiated by Audubon’s two sons, John Woodhouse and Victor Gifford, several years after his death. Collaborating with New York-based lithographer Julius Bien, they carried on Audubon’s legacy by producing his historic folio through the pioneering medium of chromolithography. In a similar manner to its Havell edition predecessor, the Bien edition was sold by subscription, beginning in 1858. However, production was brought to a halt by the advent of the Civil War and only 150 plates on 105 sheets were completed. The consensus is that fewer than seventy folios were ever completed, making the Bien edition the rarest of Audubon’s folios.

About John James Audubon

America’s most revered artist-naturalist, John James Audubon (1785—1851), is renowned for his extraordinary undertaking to visually record the birds and mammals of North America. His publications The Birds of America & The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America are icons of 19th-century art and capture the nascent stages of American natural history.

Born in 1785 in Les Cayes, Santo Domingo (Haiti) to a Creole mother and French father, Audubon spent the early years of his life in France but moved to America at age 18. It was during this time that his appreciation for birds flourished and he developed a keen artistic acumen for rendering wildlife. It was not until 1819 when Audubon was married and the father of two sons, that he embraced the life of artist-naturalist and embarked on his venture through the backwoods of America with the intent of illustrating the avian life he encountered there.

Audubon’s muti-decade venture resulted in the publication of his monumental folio The Birds of America which documented over 700 bird species on 435 plates. In a similar manner and with the help of his two sons and his friend Reverend John Bachman, Audubon later produced The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America, which contained 150 plates depicting the mammals of North America. Audubon’s folios were seismic in the fields of ornithology and mammalogy and set a new precedent for natural history illustration.

About Oppenheimer Editions

Established in 1999, our publishing company Oppenheimer Editions was developed in order to produce modern facsimiles of historic works of art. Marrying cutting-edge digital printing technologies with canonical works of art, Oppenheimer Editions has partnered with prestigious museums to make their holdings accessible to the public as fine art prints. Works from the New-York Historical Society’s unrivaled collections of John James Audubon’s watercolors and the Hudson River School paintings are examples of art that otherwise would be unobtainable.

Among the institutional collections we have partnered with are the American Museum of Natural History, the Field Museum, and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. Our Oppenheimer Editions prints are not mere reproductions. Rather, they are limited-edition fine art prints made with the finest quality archival pigments on rag watercolor paper and executed to exacting standards.

For more information about Audubon Bien Edition Pl. 195, Towhe Bunting & Pl. 189, Song Sparrow, email us at [email protected] or check out our articles What are the differences between an Audubon Havell engraving and Bien Lithograph? and Audubon Collecting Guide.

More Information About Audubon PrintsView All Articles

Detail of Audubon's Watercolor's Pl. 421, Brown Pelican

Collecting Guide: Oppenheimer Editions Audubon Prints

April 4, 2024

Since its inception in 1996, our publishing company Oppenheimer Editions has partnered with major institutions to make their holdings available as modern facsimile prints. Several [...]

Before the advent of photography, artists often referenced the living creature or stuffed specimen for their art.

Exploring Early Methods of Specimen Collection in Natural History Art

March 27, 2024

Have you ever wondered where the reference material for antique wildlife prints and paintings came from? In an era before photography, how did the artist [...]

In a satirical cartoon for Puck magazine, a woman wearing a plume bedecked hat aims a gun at a rookery of snowy herons.

Casualties of Fashion: The Contentious History of Plume Plundering

July 18, 2023

Though the idea of ornamenting oneself with a bird carcass may be a bit deterring today, historically, birds and their feathers have played a major [...]

The Etcher’s Press - The Printmaker’s Shop

What is an Engraving? A Guide to Intaglio Printmaking Techniques

June 26, 2023

This article will examine the intaglio printmaking processes of engraving, etching, and their subsidiaries in relation to image production.

Investigating Audubon’s 50 Best Watercolors

June 22, 2023

The Oppenheimer Editions Fine Art Prints of Audubon's Watercolors for The Birds of America

Interspecific Encounters in Audubon’s Birds of America

June 22, 2023

Picturing Combat between Different Species in Audubon's Prints

Audubon’s Miniature Folio – The Octavo Edition of Birds of America

June 21, 2023

A survey of the technical translation of Audubon’s work from the monumental to the miniature.

A Modernist Approach to Understanding a Selection of Prints from Audubon’s Birds of America

June 21, 2023

A Discussion of Spatial and Perspectival Distortion, Challenging the Confines of the Print Perimeter, and the Representation of Disembodied Limbs in Audubon’s Art

Weight	2 lbs
Dimensions	39.25 × 26.5 × 0.125 in
Artist	John James Audubon
Publication Title	The Birds of America – Bien Edition – Oppenheimer Editions
Type of Artwork	Oppenheimer Editions
Medium	Giclée
Creation Date	2009
Subject	Birds

Joel Oppenheimer, Inc. is committed to providing our customers with original, antique natural history art of the finest quality. Below you will find the terms and conditions of doing business with us and what to expect when you purchase artwork from our company.

Authenticity of Artwork

Joel Oppenheimer Gallery guarantees the authenticity of every piece of artwork as described. If you have any questions about the authenticity or condition of a piece, please call us at 312-642-5300 or email us at [email protected].
Return Policy

We accept returns of artwork purchased on our website within 30 days of the purchase date. Artwork returned in the same condition it was sent in is eligible for a complete refund. If it has been longer than 30 days and you wish to make an exchange, please contact a sales representative at [email protected] to make arrangements.
Payment

When purchasing art on our website, payment will be due in full when processing the order through the online shopping cart. If you would like to discuss alternate payment options, please contact the gallery at 312-642-5300 or [email protected]
Condition

Every piece of artwork shipped from Joel Oppenheimer Gallery will be sent in good to excellent condition unless otherwise stated. Due to the depth of our inventory, some artwork may need to be conserved before it is shipped to you. This service is included with the purchase of every piece of antique artwork at Joel Oppenheimer, Inc. Original Audubon Octavos 1st Edition will be shipped in an archival rag board mat. Audubon 2nd edition Octavos are shipped as is.
Delivery

Unframed artwork is typically shipped within 2 - 10 business days of purchase. If an antique piece requires conservation before it is shipped, this typically adds 5 - 10 business days to the delivery time. Framed artwork purchased online typically ship within 10 - 15 business days of the purchase date. You will be contacted in 2 - 3 business days with an estimated ship date. If you require expedited processing of your order, please contact us at 312-642-5300 or [email protected] and we will do what we can to accommodate your time frame.