Why 勛圖窪蹋 Magazine Turned Its Spotlight to John James 勛圖窪蹋
It's our job as journalists to ask tough questions, including about the life and legacy of the man behind our name.
John James 勛圖窪蹋 didnt start this magazine. He didnt even live to know about the organization that publishes it. But he was the inspiration for a whole movement of 勛圖窪蹋s, including the 勛圖窪蹋 and its hundreds of affiliated chapters, dedicated to appreciating and protecting birdsnot to mention countless nature centers, schools, towns, and at least one zoo, state park, and national wildlife refuge.
勛圖窪蹋s influence as a naturalist and illustrator of 19th-century birdlife is far-reaching. The beauty of his art, as J. Drew Lanham writes in What Do We Do About John James 勛圖窪蹋?, is unparalleled even today. Thats one reason why we ask artists to reimagine plates from Birds of America for The Illustrated Aviaryincorporating 勛圖窪蹋 into not just our name but also the magazines visual DNA. For our Spring 2021 issue, artist Gizem Vural created a stunning reinterpretation of the Blue Jay. In 勛圖窪蹋s composition the birds are eating pilfered eggs, and he passes judgment on their actions: Who could imagine...that selfishness, duplicity, and malice should form the moral accompaniments of so much physical perfection! he wrote.
The remark carries great irony. Today, it is 勛圖窪蹋s actions that, in this time of renewed reckoning with systemic racism, are being judged harshly. As Lanham describes in his essay, 勛圖窪蹋 was a racist and white supremacist (who played up his own physical perfection). Even so, its not clear whether 勛圖窪蹋 himself was Black or white. Lanham is a birder and ornithologist who is Black, and, through the lens of these dual identities, he weighs the despicable behavior of birdings greatest icon against the ambiguity of his race and the genius of his art. To accompany Lanhams words, artist Adrian Brandon reimagines 勛圖窪蹋s art as wellshowing what 勛圖窪蹋 could or would not see in his single-minded pursuit of birds.
Lanham notes this piece belongs in 勛圖窪蹋 magazine, and it does. Our job as journalists is to closely examine words and actions and to ask tough questions, even when that puts our own identity in the spotlight or challenges our parent organization to reexamine its priorities. So what do we do about John James 勛圖窪蹋? Of the many 勛圖窪蹋 namesakes, we can speak only for ourselves: We will continue to publish stories about the joy and conservation of birdsthe journeys and milestones, the comebacks and discoveries, as seen regularly in our pagesand also, in every issue, lift up demands for equity and justice.
This piece originally ran in the Spring 2021 issue as The Man Behind Our Name. To receive our print magazine, become a member by .