The second drawing installation included in Avis Fauna- Birds+ Habitat, “Nature’s Syntax” uses some birds from the historical sightings from Wave Hill that have indicated fluctuations or changes in bird population trends. But I also feature some birds that are from other parts of the globe, which are affected by habitat loss, agriculture, urbanization (one is now extinct in the wild, The Guam Kingfisher from Hawaii). Many of the birds are species that migrate, a reminder that migration paths frequently cross oceans and continents with disregard to international borders

Others are birds that occupy unique adaptations to habitat or evolutionary adaptations that are in themselves a remarkable reflection of the diversity of the natural world.

Each bird is rendered in graphite and coloured pencil on parchment, contained in a Victorian style oval frame under convex glass. The birds appear alone and isolated; the webs of the various networks are punctured motifs floating around them in smaller scale frames.

One idea I am trying to address in this work is how to bring to foreground those elements of the natural environment that are normally invisible to the casual viewer and buried within. That part of the environment that we don’t perceive immediately is still very present and often crucial to the balance and sustenance of the ecosystem’s health and species well-being. With these pieces I wanted to create a record of something present and yet not commonly seen that is nonetheless part of the contemporary natural history record.