Lars Jonsson’s Birds: Paintings from a Near Horizon

As I was reading through this book, I realized that it was incredibly repetitive. That’s not usually a good thing. But in this case it’s because I eventually became conscious that with every page flipped I was thinking wow. Jonsson’s art is, for the lack of a better word, amazing.

Lars Jonsson is a Swedish artist, and is widely considered one of the greatest living bird painters (if not THE greatest). He seems to be much more widely known in Europe than on this side of the Atlantic, however, possibly due to his European field guide. Hopefully, this book will help rectify that situation.

150 of Jonsson’s paintings are presented here, including sketches, watercolors, oil paintings, and ornithological works (field guide art, etc).

I am not an artist, nor an art critic, so I’m not sure what to say about Jonsson’s art other than that it is phenomenal. But I do have to mention my favorite painting. It shows a white Gyrfalcon perched on a rock outcrop, amidst falling snow. Yes, somehow Jonsson was able to effectively paint falling snow. I’ve seen more beautiful birds, and probably even more beautiful paintings. But something about this work just strikes a chord with me. I’m not ashamed to admit that my eyes literally tear up when I see it. I can’t recall ever having such an immediate and visceral reaction to a piece of art. (I would normally include a low-resolution picture of it in this review. But I don’t think it would have the same impact, and it would sell it short. And I don’t want to include a high-resolution image out of respect to the artist. Just trust me – find this book and turn to page 98.)

Not only is the art itself exceptional, but this book also presents it perfectly. The trim size is large enough to do it justice, yet not so big that the book becomes unwieldy. The binding and paper are of outstanding quality, and the art is reproduced in glorious detail. You can even see the texture of the canvas!

As would be expected, most of Jonsson’s subjects are European birds. However, many of them, such as some of the raptors, shorebirds, and gulls, will also be familiar to North American readers.

Jonsson has provided extensive captions to many of the works presented here. Sometimes he talks about the subject that he painted, and other times about his artistic process. These add a great deal to this book, as they give insight into the birds, art, and the artist himself. Even if you know nothing about Jonsson and skip the introductory material, the captions will make it obvious that this man is intimately familiar with not only his craft, but also his subjects. He’s not simply reproducing some object that he sees, he really knows these birds.

After appreciating all of the art, turn back to the beginning for some extensive introductory material. Jonsson provides a short forward, which is followed by essays from an art museum curator, a friend (and fellow artist), and an art critic. The latter one was hard to get through for a “non-artsy” person like myself, but the first two give a good introduction to Jonsson and his work. You don’t have to read these to appreciate the art that follows, but they will provide additional insight.

Finally, there is a gallery of Jonsson’s lithographs (from 2002-2008), chronology, list of exhibitions, and bibliography. The only thing missing here is an index, which, given the care with which this book was put together, is surprising and inexcusable.

Recommendation

Any fan of bird art needs this book. It isn’t cheap, but it is worth it. And if even one of these paintings moves you like that Gyrfalcon does me, then it will be a bargain.

Princeton University Press has more information and sample artwork.