Birds in Art

No, we’re not talking about those hunting-porn prints where big-chested mallards flash their downy underparts as they ascend from a dewy cornfield. This is more thoughtful, eclectic stuff—bird art for people who’d rather point binoculars than shotguns at our avian friends. Culled from a respected annual show at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin, it’s a vivid reminder of why artists have always loved the graceful lines, vibrant colors, and mythological import of birds. Sixty artists take the theme and fly with it in contemporary paintings, drawings, and sculptures, that, for casual viewers, will show a dignified side of the oft-belittled wildlife art genre. And for mourning-dove lovers and albatross aficionados, it’ll provide a fine wintertime diversion. 10 Church St. SE, Minneapolis; 612-624-7083