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January Issue
2009
At the Bridge
Gallery in Folly Beach, SC, Features Prints of Works by John James
Audubon
At the Bridge Gallery in Folly Beach, SC, is presenting prints of works by John James Audubon, from originals from the family collection of Dr. Roswell Eldridge, on view through Jan. 31, 2009.
Roswell Eldridge MD, grew up with an 1856 royal octavo size set of John James Audubon's Birds of America. The seven volume set was purchased by Dr. Eldridge's father in 1919. Audubon's personal colorful descriptions for each bird attracted Dr. Eldridge as much as the 500 royal octavo size hand colored prints. Later he learned that Audubon was the most honored naturalist of his time, joining Benjamin Franklin as the only American Pre-Civil War member of the Royal Society of London. Only in these royal octavo volumes was Audubon able to publish both his art and his natural history writing.
Presently these unique volumes are being destroyed as individual pages with prints are removed and sold for as much as $1,500, the text generally discarded. In 2006, Dr. Eldridge could locate less than 200 of the 1200 sets originally published. To publicize the endangered nature of these royal octavo volumes, as well as Audubon's contributions as a naturalist, Dr. Eldridge embarked on a preservation initiative. The initial funding was provided for 20 with a PBS film documenting Audubon's amazing life and an international conference focused on Audubon as writer, naturalist, and publisher of the royal octavo volumes that was held in Rensselaerville, NY, Dr. Eldridge's home town.
Dr. Edldridge has made it possible to obtain beautiful facsimile prints from the family's royal octavo volumes so it is not necessary to destroy the sets.
Suzan McNeill of At the Bridge Gallery will be displaying over 20 of these prints, including all 14 of audubon's owls. Eleven prints of birds life size. Prices are affordable and each of the limited edition prints is accompanied by a stamped, embossed certificate of authenticity and an attractive illustrated booklet containing Audubon's complete text for the bird.
For further information
check our SC Commercial Gallery listings or call the gallery at
843/588-2002.
Carolina Arts is published monthly by Shoestring Publishing Company, a subsidiary of PSMG, Inc. Copyright© 2009 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston Arts from July 1987 - Dec. 1994 and South Carolina Arts from Jan. 1995 - Dec. 1996. It also publishes Carolina Arts Online, Copyright© 2009 by PSMG, Inc. All rights reserved by PSMG, Inc. or by the authors of articles. Reproduction or use without written permission is strictly prohibited. Carolina Arts is available throughout North & South Carolina.