Birds!

As I walked around the Audubon exhibit and examined all the works presented, I could help but be extremely impressed. From the slight ruffle in some of the birds' feathers to fact that each bird was live size, the attention to detail was extreme. I was curious as to how Audubon conducted his work, and I was pleased to find there was a video in the exhibit that told us how. The grid matching method that Audubon used was interesting, but I was surprised at how painstaking the process seemed to be. The man replicating the process told how his arm was tight not too long after starting, so I cannot imagine how Audubon managed to work for the hours at a time he was said to have devoted to the birds. Slightly unrelated, I found it rather entertaining to discover that Audubon was a strong advocate for protection of wild birds despite the fact that on an average hunting day he was reported to have bagged a hundred birds at a time. 

For the second part of our visit to the exhibit, "Navigation: An Investigation into Physical Intelligence", I really had no idea what what was going on at first, and I don't think a lot of other people did. I was expecting a small group of humbly dressed dancers somehow jumping around in an attempt to imitate the flight of birds. Little did I know that would be the one attempting to imitate a bird. Attempting to emulate the movement of a flock was extremely interesting and even fun, but I was most intrigued to learn how birds are able to navigate. I was already aware of the use of magnetism, but was surprised and delighted to find that birds are able to hear things such as the Atlantic Ocean's waves crashing on the eastern shore or the wind blowing through the Grand Canyon and use them to navigate. 

Monson's final part of the performance, which I've decided to call the Earth and Rain Dance, was extremely engaging. I am having difficulty pinpointing exactly why, but I think it was because the performers just completely let loose and seem to let their body interact with the environment unhindered. I found myself wanting to join them, but given the mud and rain (and perhaps  my lack of confidence) I decided just to watch. In the future, though, I would love to try the dance out.