Aviary

The Bird in Contemporary Photography

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A thought-provoking overview of contemporary bird photography, featuring the work of more than 50 internationally recognized photographers

Photographs of birds feature rarely in the early decades of photography: birds were too fast to be captured in flight, and could not be depicted in colour, issues that took many years to rectify. Today, however, with superb technical means at their disposal, photographers have taken to the subject with great enthusiasm, inspired by our ever-increasing understanding and appreciation of avian complexity.

Aviary features the work of more than fifty internationally recognized photographers who explore our relationship with birds, questioning how we observe them and respond to their presence – and vice versa. Taking an eclectic curatorial approach, Danaé Panchaud and William A. Ewing weave together photography from the diverse fields of art, documentary, fashion, portraiture, ornithology and wildlife photography, proposing intriguing new dialogues and visual theatre between these different modes of photographic expression. Rather than being organized by field of study or species, Aviary surveys the symbiotic relationship between animals and humans through six thematic chapters imagined as ‘acts’ in a theatrical pageant.

Both a visual celebration of the wonders of nature and a stark reminder of its fragility, Aviary presents a compelling portrait of our relationship with birds through the work of contemporary photographers such as Leila Jeffreys, Sarah Moon, Roger Ballen, Charles Fréger, Vik Muniz, Tim Flach, Viviane Sassen, Robert Clark and Nadav Kander, among many others.
Extent: 272 pp
Format: PLC (no jacket)
Illustrations: 223
Publication date: 2025-09-11
Size: 29.5 x 24.5 cm
ISBN: 9780500029084

Press Reviews

Celebrates not only the avian world, but the photographers using creative techniques to produce original artworks, from characterful studio portraits to eyecatching abstracts … though the work of each photographer is markedly different, each, in their own way, highlights the remarkable beauty and wonder found in the world of birds
Amateur Photographer

An odyssey of more than 200 pages through the world of winged wonders
New Scientist



About the Authors

William A. Ewing has been an author, lecturer, curator of photography and museum director for more than 40 years. His many publications on
photography include The Body, Civilization: The Way We Live Now, Edward Burtynsky: Essential Elements and Flora Photographica – The Flower in Contemporary Photography, all published by Thames & Hudson. Danaé Panchaud is a curator and lecturer specializing in photography. She is the director of the Centre de la Photographie Genève and co-author of Flora Photographica – The Flower in Contemporary Photography.

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