Lyrebird Tales Volume 29 Number 4 December 2020 BirdLife Yarra Valley Newsletter Lyrebird Painting Mystery by Valerie Fowler He painted portraits by commission before returning to Europe to study painting formally. In time Vlaho Bukovac became known as an excellent portraitist exhibiting paintings, particularly nudes. Bukovac is renowned for his Symbolist painting, “Une Fleur” (A Flower), painted in 1887, which sold at Bonham’s in London in 2006 for £100,800.00. He died in Prague in 1922. It is thought that Bukovac decorated the walls of the east wing of his childhood home at age 16 (around 1871-72) most likely after his return from America and before leaving to study art in Paris. The wall paintings in the rooms, corridors and stairwells are schematic: the lower portions are decorative friezes. Of interest, the friezes were of framed decorative pictures of various flower motifs, landscapes, animals and birds. Some paintings depicted animals that were considered exotic for that time and place such as rhinoceros, crocodiles, anteater and the Superb Lyrebird. The Lyrebird painting in Croatia photo © Graeme Hosken upper portions of the walls were predominantly monochromatic. In his autobiography, Bukovac himself In October 2015 at a Birdlife Melbourne meeting, Graeme states, “I told my father that I would decorate the house with Hosken showed me a photograph of a wall mural featuring a paintings and decorations like I had seen at the house of the Superb Lyrebird. painter Zabedeo in Dubrovnik, and I did. Those were my first I was very surprised to learn that the image was one of a works of painting.” Continued on page 2 series of paintings on a wall inside The Bukovac House in the village of Cavtat, 16km south of Dubrovnik in Croatia. The Contents Bukovac House is the birthplace and museum of the Croatian 1-4. Lyrebird Painting Mystery by Valerie Fowler painter, Vlaho Bukovac. He was one of the most prominent Croatian artists and a founder of modern Croatian painting. 5. Small Excursions in a Pandemic Lockdown, Doug & Jan. Yellow-faced Honeyeater in St Andrews by Dace Fitton The wall paintings at Bukovac House, which included the Superb Lyrebird image, were discovered during initial 6. Not Again by Dick Wellington. Poor Old Laughing Kookaburras by Warren Cousins restoration works on the house. In 1998 exploratory tests confirmed the existence of tempera paintings (a method of 7-8. A Visit to Wedderburn by Doug Pocock and Jan painting using emulsion) on the walls of the east wing of the Llewelyn house. In 2003 work started to take place cleaning the 8. Tawny Frogmouths in Nunawading photo, Lyn Mckelvie. simply painted walls and original paintings were restored. BirdLife Yarra Valley Committee. Superb Lyrebirds in the Blue Mountains, an update by Victoria Austin. Vlaho Bukovac was born in Cavtat in 1855 as Biagio Faggioni; (he changed his name to Bukovac in 1877). At age 9. Yarra Valley Trail, Lilydale to Yarra Glen. 11 Bukovac left for America with his uncle who unfortunately 10. Lillydale Lake Wetlands upgrade. What Bird is that? soon died. He returned to Cavtat 4 years later from New York. He then became a sailor on a boat travelling to 11. Interesting Sightings Istanbul-Liverpool-Odessa. Unfortunately, Bukovac suffered a 12. Spadoni’s Nature Reserve revisited by Valerie Fowler dangerous fall into the ship’s hold and this career became 13. Outing to Yea Wetlands followed by visit to Gobur short lived. He returned to Cavtat to convalesce and when he Nature Reserve by Warren Cousins had recovered, he left for Peru in 1873. One year later he went to San Francisco where he began his career as an 14. Calendar of Events amateur painter and took lessons in art. Lyrebird Tales So where did Bukovac become inspired to paint the Superb The time when Australia was starting to be colonised Lyrebird and exotic animals? Perhaps he saw them on his coincided with the blossoming of the print culture, colour journeys in North America or in the Mediterranean. What print technologies, lithographic and illustrative engraving. It appears to be a fence in the background behind the Lyrebird also occurred at a time when European ornithology and bird suggests it was in captivity. It has also been suggested that science were developing. In the beginning bird images were he may have found motifs for his paintings in some books. often stylised, but in time became more scientifically Therefore, below is some information I researched that may recorded. have inspired or influenced the style of his Superb Lyrebird John Latham’s Superb Menura Lyrebird engraving was painting. illustrated for the first time in 1800. John Latham became the leading English ornithologist, often known as the The first sighting of a Superb Lyrebird was in 1797 by an ex- “Grandfather of Australia”. Latham provided the first convict who lived with Aboriginals after his term expired in publicised description and scientific names of many 1792. He said a bird of the pheasant species was in the bush Australian birds including the ‘Lyre-bird’. Latham did not near Sydney but this information was treated with travel much himself but the period of his ornithological work scepticism. The first recorded sighting was in 1798 by John coincided with the voyages of James Cook and the early Price who in the same year shot two birds. He described colonisation of Australia. He was a correspondent and friend them as pheasants, but with tails which resembled a peacock and of all the important English naturalists and bird with long feathers which are white, orange and lead colour collectors, so was able to examine specimens of birds that and black at the ends. (Historical Records NSW, 3 Appendix reached England and drawings made by the artists on board C.) all of Cook’s voyages. John Latham’s 1802 picture depicts a 1797 – 1798. The first Superb Lyrebird skins collected from Lyrebird standing with its tail stretched out horizontally in an the region around Sydney were sent to England. The Superb erect position comprising a thick mass of feathers that were Lyrebird at that time was known a ‘Mountain Pheasant’ or of an even length. The Lyrate feathers form the outside of sometimes a ‘Lyretail’. the tail with the club ends curling outwards; they encompass the two central thin ribbon feathers amongst an almost solid A Lyrebird specimen was shipped to England in the early 19th mass of other tail feathers that do not represent Lyrebird’s Century and was prepared for display for the British Museum lacy filament feathers. by a taxidermist who had never seen a live Lyrebird. The taxidermist mistakenly thought that the tail would resemble a Superb Menura Lyrebird lyre. He presumed that the tail would be held upright in a engraving by John Latham 1801. Source: National similar way to that of a Peacock during courtship display and Library of Australia so he arranged the feathers in this way. John Latham’s engraving has On the 4th November 1800 Thomas Davies gave a scientific similarities to the painting by description of “Menura superba a bird of New South Wales” to Bukovac, such as the position the Linnean Society. Major General Thomas Davies was a of the bird standing on a British Army officer and naturalist. He was an elected fellow green flat surface, but the colouring, length of legs and tail of the Royal Society and Linnean are different. In the engraving the Lyrebird’s body shape, is Society; he contributed articles on similar to the Bukovac’s Lyrebird painting, but has a longer ornithology in Australia. He studied a neck and less solid body. Bukovac’s Lyrebird tail is slightly specimen of a male Lyrebird for his raised and more realistic. illustration dated 1799 and published in 1802. The style of this painting is A Lyrebird picture featured in Latham’s ‘General synopsis of not at all similar to Bukovac’s. birds’; the earliest major investigation of Australian birds (1781 – 1785). Pictures I have seen attributed to this “Menura Superba” Artist Thomas Davies 1802. publication show a very stylish Lyrebird with solid lyrate feathers that cross midway before curving inwards to form a Source: Wikipedia heart shape at the tip. The ribbon feathers follow a similar In the late 18th and 19th centuries in the age of stylised pattern curving outwards past the filamentary enlightenment, Europeans were studying and trying to feathers that show they are branched or bracketed. The bird understand the world through scientific analysis and is looking back over to its vertical tail. The body colour of this investigational observation on a scale never seen before. This Lyrebird picture including the contrasting wing shade are included trying to comprehend the new and exciting both features of Bukovac’s Lyrebird but the stance is discoveries from the new world. People were astounded by different. Also attributed to John Latham is ‘Index what they saw shipped home as specimens of science from Ornithologicus, Sive Systema Ornithologiae’ (1790) and ‘A the Australian colonies since the first landing. Visual imagery General History of Birds’ (1821-1824) consisting of 10 became increasingly more important rather than the previous volumes, including 193 hand-coloured plates by Latham. He use of written descriptions of fauna and stuffed dead also contributed descriptions of birds for ‘The Voyage of specimens. Images were favoured due to their ability to Governor Phillip to Botany Bay’. depict their oddity, colour and beauty. 2 Lyrebird Tales Lyrebird Tales 1804 Superb Lyrebird, Menura branch. The Lyrebird has its wings extended, an extra long novaehollandiae from 'An account of neck (more like a Peacock) and a long upright tail.