Blue Jay

Art Historical Context

This striking print of a Blue Jay belongs to John James Audubon’s landmark series *The Birds of America*, published between 1827 and 1838. Although Audubon created the original watercolor, the engraving was executed by Robert Havell in London, who translated the artist’s dynamic compositions into a format suitable for wide distribution. The 1831 date places the work in the middle of this ambitious project, which sought to document every bird species in North America at life size. The medium of hand-colored engraving and aquatint on luxurious Whatman wove paper was essential to the series’ success. Aquatint allowed Havell to capture the subtle gradations of feather texture and foliage, while the careful hand-coloring brought Audubon’s birds vividly to life for viewers who would never see them in the wild. Measuring over three feet tall in its full sheet, the print exemplifies the monumental “double-elephant” folio format that made *The Birds of America* both a scientific reference and a work of art. Today this impression, gifted to the National Gallery of Art by Mrs. Walter B. James, offers visitors a tangible connection to early nineteenth-century natural-history illustration. It reflects both the era’s growing fascination with American wildlife and the extraordinary collaboration between artist, engraver, and colorist that brought Audubon’s vision to audiences across two continents.

About the Artist

Robert Havell after John James Audubon

Robert Havell Jr., born on November 25, 1793, in Reading, Berkshire, England, was the son of renowned engraver and publisher Robert Havell Sr. and Lydia Miller Phillips. Growing up in a family of artists that included notable engravers and etchers, he trained under his father, mastering aquatint techniques early on. Though briefly estranged from the family business, Havell reconciled with his fath...