Two Eastern Phoebes

Barbara Bosworth, Two Eastern Phoebes, 2004, chromogenic print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Haluk and Elisa Soykan, 2008.2.24, © 2004, Barbara Bosworth
Copied Barbara Bosworth, Two Eastern Phoebes, 2004, chromogenic print, 18 1⁄4 x 23 3⁄8 in. (46.4 x 59.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Haluk and Elisa Soykan, 2008.2.24, © 2004, Barbara Bosworth

Artwork Details

Title
Two Eastern Phoebes
Artist
Date
2004
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
18 1⁄4 x 23 3⁄8 in. (46.4 x 59.4 cm)
Copyright
© 2004, Barbara Bosworth
Credit Line
Gift of Haluk and Elisa Soykan
Mediums Description
chromogenic print
Classifications
Highlights
Subjects
  • Animal — bird — phoebe
Object Number
2008.2.24
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2008.2.24

Artwork Description

For her series Birds and Other Angels, Barbara Bosworth followed bird banders--scientists who catch, tag, and release birds for study and data collection--during spring migrations in northeast Ohio and central Massachusetts. The photographs seem at first to be concerned with classifying the natural world. But they are also part of an encompassing portrait of a complex and interconnected universe filled with wonder and metaphor.
Bosworth encountered gestures in Italian Renaissance paintings that recalled her own images: "I was amazed by a painting of a saint with his arms extended, releasing a bird towards heaven. It reminded me of the motion made when these captive birds are set free." In her photographs, we sense the quick pulse and energy of these delicate creatures, poised to take flight the instant they are released.