The first post to this blog was Cover art from government documents. In this post I present California condor art from inside the covers of government publications.
The name of the artist and citation for the publication are given below the images.
The first 2 drawings show the California condor in its habitat:
Artist: Harry Adamson. Publication: Robinson, Cyril S. Notes on the California condor collected on Los Padres National Forest, California. Forest Service. 1940.
Artist: [Bob?] Hines. Publication: A detailed report on the Sespe Creek Project. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1969.
This is a representation of a Chumash Indian cave drawing:
Artist: Unknown. Publication: Los Padres National Forest: an introduction. Forest Service. 1981.
Here is a straightforward sketch of a captive-reared chick interacting with a “parent” hand puppet:
Artist: Uncredited. Publication: California condor: Gymnogyps californianus. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1998.
The remainder of the illustrations in this post come from the September-October 1983 issue of Outdoor California magazine, a publication of the California Department of Fish and Game. This special issue was devoted to the California condor.
Artist: Tom Waters.
The next 2 images are by school children:
Artist: Joann Oshiyama (4th grader).
Artist: Takako Suzuki (5th grader).
Below are 2 of the images from a set of 3 that illustrate the tracking of condors via radio transmitters on their wings:
Artist: Tony Pingitore.
This pointillist profile of a condor in flight is striking:
Artist: Susan Mockenhaupt.
This image showing the size of a condor is not as useful as it would have been 3 decades ago, when Volkswagen Beetles were everywhere:
Artist: Tony Pingitore.
(When I showed the image above to a friend, he immediately responded with a question: “How many condors can fit in a Volkswagen?” At some point in my youth, it was common to hear “How many X can fit in a Volkswagen?” where X could be just about anything.)
My sense is that images like those above — all from government publications — have largely been replaced by color photographs. Of course, those government publications are now more likely to be published online than on paper. While there is much to be said for color photography and online publication, these new technologies cannot fully replace art work on paper.
Pseudogryps 