Collection Des oiseaux (On birds)
Hardcover / Two versions: English and French
96 pages
205mm x 260mm
47 colour photographs
AU$82.50 + postage ($20 within Australia)
Signed copy available to order (English version) - please contact james@leilajeffreys.com - include your postal address for the invoice.
With this book Leila Jeffreys takes us on a journey through tropical forests and jungles all over the world towards astonishing bird species that she has been taking studio portraits of since 2008: “I’ve long noticed how many birds have specific expressions, just like us”, she explains. Jeffreys’ images, which rely on a profound connection with her sitters cultivated over many years, are an exercise in both artistry and empathy. Cultivating the art of waiting, Jeffreys develops a gallery of whimsical and hyper-realist portraits where all the birds come attired in their most beautiful finery with sumptuous plumage colours. One by one, they let their character shine through: graceful, mischievous, shy, proud, timid, poseur, all of which seem to want to chat to the viewer. Her practice underlines how humans anthropomorphise animals and what we really do share.
This publication is part of the Des oiseaux (On birds) collection celebrating, through the vision of different artists, their immense presence in a world where they are now vulnerable. Accompanying these photographs, the ornithologist Guilhem Lesaffre writes a special essay. Titles in this collection include: Graciela Iturbide, Michael Kenna, Yoshinori Mizutani, Bernard Plossu, Pentti Sammallahti, and Terri Weifenbach.
Atelier EXB / Éditions Xavier Barral publish books taking a visual approach to the new shapes of photography, contemporary art and sciences. Founded in 2002 by Xavier Barral, the publishing house conceives each book where style and content meet to tell an astonishing and singular story. Raising curiosity through the image and bringing one to discover new artistic voices, subjects that belong to our history. Each book is a singular object whose aesthetic, philosophical, and design choices take pride of place.