Plate 117 Mississippi Kite 

Editor: We are looking at *Plate 117, Mississippi Kite,* a watercolor and print by John James Audubon. It's beautifully detailed. I'm immediately drawn to how still and composed the birds appear; there's something very serene about it. What do you see when you look at this piece? Curator: Serene is a great word for it. For me, this image is like a perfectly captured moment of stillness in the wild theatre of life. Audubon wasn’t just drawing a bird; he was painting a portrait of an American Eden, where the Mississippi Kite reigns, if only for a moment, at peace. What do you think about the idea that the birds seem more like characters in a play than simple specimens? Editor: I think it really clicks when you mention the word 'portrait' because now I see them as more than just subjects! Does the setting itself, with the mossy branch, play a significant role in building the scene? Curator: Absolutely. That branch draped with moss isn’t just a perch; it's an emblem of the South itself, a whisper of humid mornings and hidden bayous. The branch is sort of like the kite’s stage, perfectly set to amplify the romance of the Southern landscape. It pulls us in, doesn't it? Editor: It definitely does! The way you describe the southern backdrop, like a perfectly designed set for Audubon's character, makes me appreciate this piece in a whole new light! I was too focused on just the birds themselves. Curator: Art, like life, is about layers. We see what we're ready to see, and sometimes we need someone else's eyes to notice the stage around us! Now you see what's really in the print and your awareness deepens; that’s fantastic.