A closer look reveals a complex and disturbingly anthropomorphic universe, full of symbols, sly jokes, and allusions to the ‘operatic’ quality of traditional natural history. The thrifty avians are tolerant of humans and can store up to 60,000 acorns in a single hoard, even using telephone poles and fence posts to house their provisions.Īt first glance, Ford’s large-scale, highly detailed watercolors and etchings of animals recall the prints of 19th-century illustrators John James Audubon and Edward Lear. The print depicts crimson-capped Acorn Woodpeckers guarding their cache of acorns as the Hollywood Hills-and the famed Stahl House-are threatened by wildfire. Granary is a follow-up to Ford’s Calafia series, in which the artist explores California’s myth, folklore, and cinematic history. Working with master printers Peter Pettengill and James Pettengill at Wingate Studio, Ford used the traditional techniques of line etching, hard and soft ground, aquatint, spit bite, sugar lift, and drypoint to create this print.
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