Once we’d finally settled on our new brand name (inspired when Martha heard the disnctive call of a Nightjar on an evening walk) we knew exactly who we needed to bring our avian icon to life; award-winning artist Paul Harfleet.

Paul - recognised globally for his ‘Pansy Project’ - has been an avid, passionate ornithologist since childhood. He began his ‘Birds Can Fly’ project during the 2020 lockdown, creating exquisite, detailed illustrations of all varieties of birds and bringing colour and joy to everyone’s timelines in a time of isolation and darkness. Paul added a new dimension to the project with the introduction of his ‘Gentle References’, styling himself as the bird subject, to sit alongside the drawings, with incredible results.

He says: “My ‘gentle references’ have become a way for me to depict the birds I draw. Fashion, make-up and styling not only enable me to reflect the aesthetic nature of my subjects but also reveal some of their cultural history. My hope is that my illustrations and the beautiful absurdity of my ‘gentle references’ encourage the interested to discover more about the occasional absurdity of ornithology. I reflect on the issues raised on my blog, where I explore the naming of birds and the colonialism of ornithology from an intersectional queer perspective”.

Thank you, Paul, for bringing us our very own little bird! We will treasure him!

We would strongly encourage you to explore Paul’s work and the tantalising goodies he has for sale featuring his beautiful drawings - We want them ALL!

 birdscanflystore.com