Sumptuous, informative, and written by a leading scholar in the field, this is the ultimate book on North American bird decoys. Shaw provides an insightful look at the decoy's Native American origins through its evolution, and demonstrates that although they were created as humble tools, decoys are also works of art, examples of craftsmanship and ingenuity, and pieces of history. The 300 stunning illustrations include delicate paintings by John James Audubon, as well as both historic and contemporary photography.
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
Review
A compelling read [that] combines natural history, art, and cultural history in one gloriously illustrated book. This belongs on the shelf of every enthusiast of decoys, folk art, or ornithology.
--Brian Cullity, New England Antiques Journal
A must-have book for all decoy enthusiasts, but also of great value and interest to sportsmen, birders, American history buffs, and folk art enthusiasts. Definitive. ----Stan Van Etten, Editor & Publisher, Hunting & Fishing Collectibles Magazine
--Brian Cullity, New England Antiques Journal
A must-have book for all decoy enthusiasts, but also of great value and interest to sportsmen, birders, American history buffs, and folk art enthusiasts. Definitive. ----Stan Van Etten, Editor & Publisher, Hunting & Fishing Collectibles Magazine
From the Inside Flap
Bird decoys, which were first fashioned by Native American hunter-artists at least 1,500 years ago, are the only major folk art form to originate in North America. Today, decoys made during the heyday of decoy carving--roughly from 1840 to 1950--rank among the most avidly sought of all folk art collectibles, with some rare and outstanding examples fetching upwards of $8000,000 apiece at auction. These humble hunting tools, intended to deceive wildfowl by luring them into shooters' range, are now appreciated on many levels: as compelling works of sculpture, as exacting portraits of living and extinct species, and as irreplaceable historical objects.
Successful decoy carvers of the past knew their prey intimately--spending countless hours observing game birds in the wild and then bringing their accumulated knowledge of different species' appearance and behavior to the carving bench. Because the works these artisans created were meant to attract avian eyes--conveying the essence of a bird's plumage, form, and attitude at a glance--older handmade decoys are deeply observed symbols of living birds that no merely decorative object, no matter how photographically accurate, can match.
In this definitive, lavishly illustrated work, folk-art expert Robert Shaw chronicles the now-vanished era in which the great decoy makers pursued their craft. Shaw traces the natural history of North American bird species--more than sixty of which are represented in antique decoys. He relates the history of wildfowl hunting on this continent, detailing the excesses of nineteenth-century commercial hunting and the rise of a conservation movement aimed at ensuring bird species' long-term survival. He examines the distinctive forms produced in each major hunting area, from the Maritime Provinces of Canada to the Chesapeake Bay to the bayous of Louisiana and beyond. And, with a storyteller's gift for the entertaining anecdote, Shaw puts us in touch with the lives and circumstances of the decoy makers themselves.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Robert Shaw is a gifted communicator who lectures, writes, curates, and consults on many aspects of American folk arts and crafts. His many critically acclaimed books include American Quilts: The Democratic Art, Hand Made, Hand Played: The Art and Craft of Contemporary Guitars, The Art Quilt, America's Traditional Crafts, and American Baskets. He has curated exhibitions at major museums and expositions in the United States, Europe, and Japan, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival.; contributed to numerous books and exhibition catalogs; written articles for The Magazine Antiques, Early American Life, Sports Afield, Fiber Arts, and other periodicals; and served as a consultant to museums, private collectors, and Sotheby's auction house. His web sites are www.roberteshaw.com and www.artofthequilt.com.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Robert Shaw decoy book,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Bird Decoys of North America: Nature, History, and Art (Hardcover)
Recommended especially to those with a new interest in North American decoys, but seasoned collectors will also enjoy the wonderful photography and historic photographs and will pick up nuggets of information from Shaw's text. Many of the decoys illustrated may be familiar to the more hard core collectors, as some have previously been illustrated in other publications or auction catalogs. Regardless, the authors knowledge of the subject, the wonderful illustrations,and the overall format and presentation of the book, coupled with the reasonable cost make this a worthy acquisition to anyone with interest in the subject
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great read.,
By aaardvarj (Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Bird Decoys of North America: Nature, History, and Art (Hardcover)
Excellent review of the history of decoys. I'm a duck hunter and found this to be informative and enjoyable.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Book,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Bird Decoys of North America: Nature, History, and Art (Hardcover)
According to my son, who was the recipient of this gift, this is a wonderful book, especially because of the history of decoys and wonderful pictures and illustrations. This is truly a great gift for the duck hunter.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
