A unique celebration of the architectural ingenuity of birds by an acclaimed illustrator.
Susan Ogilvy started painting bird nests almost by accident. One day while tidying up her
garden after a storm she found a chaffinch nest - a strange sodden lump on the grass under a
fir tree. She carried it inside and placed it on a newspaper over the next few hours as the
water drained out of it the sodden lump blossomed into a mossy jewel. She was amazed and
dropped everything to make a painting of the nest at exact life size. This was the start of an
obsession Ogilvy has since painted more than fifty bird nests from life each time marvelling
at its ingenious construction. Every species of bird has its own vernacular but sources its
materials - most commonly twigs roots grasses reeds leaves moss lichen hair feathers
and cobwebs less usually mattress stuffing and string - according to local availability.
Ogilvy would of course never disturb nesting birds instead she relies upon serendipity
which is why all her nests have either been abandoned after fulfilling their purpose or
displaced by strong winds. Although Nests showcases the specimens she has found near her homes
in Somerset and on the Isle of Arran its subject matter is by no means only British since
these same birds can be found all over Europe Scandinavia and as far afield as Russia Turkey
and North Africa. This wondrous book is all the more special for its rarity. Few modern books
exist specifically on the subject of bird nests the most recent among the author's reference
works was published in 1932. Exquisitely designed and packaged Nests will be an essential
addition to the libraries of all nature lovers--Publisher's description.
