Artvoice: Buffalo's #1 Newsweekly
Home Blogs Web Features Calendar Listings Artvoice TV Real Estate Classifieds Contact


Installation by Janelle Iglesias at UB Center for the Arts

Bowerbirds spare no efforts to attract a mate. They build intricate architectural structures of twigs and leaves and such—the bowers—then embellish them with all sorts of gaudy baubles—feathers, shells, pebbles, coins, butterfly wings, whatever available bright and shiny things, including more and more in modern times items in plastic. Each species of bowerbird—there are 17 species in all in New Guinea and parts of Australia—has preferences as to architectural style, décor items, and even color schemes. One species only decorates in blue. (I remember when I was a child, one of my aunts decorated her Christmas tree exclusively in blue lights. She was considered—as I’m sure was her intent—extremely sophisticated. Admired, though not so well-liked by the other women in the family, I got the sense. It’s possible the blue-bias species is not so well-liked by the other bowerbirds.)

Watercolors by Patrick Willett at Studio Hart

Studio Hart Gallery is presenting a series of small-scale works on paper in ink and watercolor by Patrick Willett, curated by Gerald Mead.



Back to issue index