It is tempting to begin this review of the current exhibition at the Bermuda Arts Centre at Dockyard by writing that it is for the birds. While that would not be untrue, it might give a false impression, because, while it is an unjuried exhibition, it is notably good.

This exhibition is cosponsored by the Art Centre and the Bermuda Audubon Society and indeed, it is all about birds.

My initial impression upon entering the gallery was that it is packed with art and surely it is, for there are over one hundred works of art in the show.

What is remarkable, is the over-all high standard. Of course there are a few works that are obviously by beginners and that is the beauty of an unjuried show.

It does allow beginners to make a start in exhibiting. There are even some artists represented in this exhibition, although themselves only recent beginners, they, through the process of being allowed to exhibit, first in unjuried shows, have rapidly developed into fairly accomplished artists. That surely is gratifying to see.

The dominant artist in the exhibition has to be Eric Amos. That is true by the sheer number of works he has submitted, but also, by the quality of his paintings as well.

He has sixteen paintings on the wall of the Art Centre. Eric Amos is certainly Bermuda?s premier wildlife artist and even if his numbers were considerably less, my take is that he would still dominate the show.

This is because of his sheer skill and precision in painting birds. All but one of his contributions to this show are in watercolour. The exception is a drawing in graphite.

What is notable is the way that Mr. Amos goes about presenting his birds, for he places them in a broad landscape or seascape setting and at times the actual bird might take-up a fairly small portion of the painting.

His paintings can therefore, be enjoyed on several levels, certainly as landscape, but the bird, although sometimes small, is so placed as to make you take notice of its presence and additionally, the bird is identifiable as a species.

It has been said that the paintings of Eric Amos are mere illustrations. Well, illustrative they may be but hardly mere illustrations.

Besides, the illustration is just one category among many in the visual arts and they all serve a certain function and one particular category is not necessarily better than any other.

By the way, it is well known in the history of illustration that many really famous artists have at times actually produced real, honest-to-goodness illustrations that today grace many an art museum wall.

The list includes, Albrecht Durer, Hans Holbein, Pirenesi, Goya, Daumier, William Morris, Aubrey Beardsley, Matisse, Picasso, Rouault and many others. I fail to see that just because a work is illustrative that this should be considered a put-down.

Otto Trott?s contribution to this exhibition consists of fourteen works in both oil paint and watercolour. This is really surprising, for Mr. Trott, although known for his accomplishments in painting, is not generally known for painting birds.

His bird paintings, unlike those by Eric Amos, centre on the bird itself, the bird being dominant in the composition.

His approach to depicting the bird and anything else in the work, is impressionistic and since this is his way of painting, this is to be expected. What is notable, especially with his small oils is the quality of light.

His works appear to be bathed in light filtered through foliage. I was interested in seeing Otto Trott?s watercolours for he is better known for his oil paintings.

I thought that his watercolours varied in quality and at times were a little overworked, but his ?Bluebird? was freely rendered, creating a liveliness and appeal that certainly made it one of the more outstanding works in the show.

Toward the back of the gallery are two pastels of note and the two artists that produced them are fairly new on the Bermuda art scene.

In fact I had never seen anything before by Caron Pimental, but I was struck, not only by the actual work but also by the quality of its presentation.

The frame she selected is simple and understated, but of very good quality. The mat is also of a suitable colour and in keeping with the understatement of the frame. The work itself, is of a Mourning Dove nesting in between the hands of a bunch of bananas.

Right next to the pastel of the to the ?Mourning Dove is a bluebird in pastel by Francis Furbert. I do know the work of Ms Furbert and although she is also fairly new on the local art scene, just about every time she exhibits, I see real development in her work.

Her work also is professionally framed and again, very understated, so much so that the actual work is allowed to ?sing? without the competition of an elaborate, overstated frame.

Nearby is a delightful rendition of a common House Sparrow by Jackie Stevenson. Her rapid way of drawing gives us the sense that the sparrow is doing what sparrows do; hop about and chirp.

Speaking of frames, on the other side of the gallery there is a series of small oil paintings by Christopher Grimes There is one painting of a bluebird with wings in motion and the motion of the wings are such that one senses the actual motion.

In that respect, it is an appealing painting, but the gold frame surrounding this painting takes over and seems to say, ?look at me.? It is a good work in a not so appropriate frame.

What is true of this particular painting is also true of the other nine paintings that Mr. Grimes has submitted to the show. He uses very similar frames for all of them.

Until I encountered the frames surrounding Christopher Grimes?s oil paintings, I realised that I had not noticed the frames surrounding the work of so many of the other artists that I had already seen.

I actually went back to see just how it is that Eric Amos presents his work, or Otto Trott and others also. I realised that they had their works so well framed, I did not notice the frame at all. I just saw the work. This is as it should be.

I especially enjoyed Sheilagh Head?s painting, ?A New Day?. While I am uncertain as to the location of the scene, I thought it must be Spittal Pond.

For me, it brought back memories of bird watching there and the placement of the birds flying high in the composition seems so correct.

I cannot tell you just what kind of species it is that is flying about, although I am fairly certain that it must be some kind of shore bird. What is particularly notable in this painting is the quality of the light. The landscape is bathed in a golden glow.

Vernon Clarke?s contribution to the exhibit is a decorative tour de force. He uses a material called Lexan as the painting ground and he tells me that it is a type of very hard Plexiglass.

What he does with this material is first sand or possibly sand blast it to give the surface ?tooth? or a roughened surface, so that it will hold paint.

He then takes a Dremel tool and using something like a dentist?s drill, he actually outlines the design by cutting into the surface of the Laxan.

After this he paints the design and in the case of this exhibition, he uses as his subjects such birds as the Longtail or the Kiskadee. Finally, his frames are notable.

He tells me he makes his own but what is so special about them is that the painting flows over onto the frame in a decorative way that just seems right.

Wendy Frith?s coloured pencil and ink drawings are notable for their great detail, especially the precise depiction of plumage. Indeed, when it comes to precision, she gives Eric Amos a ?run for the money?.

Additionally, there is the matter of colour. In this exhibition she has chosen to depict birds that are especially colourful and the colour red or red orange is pretty dominant.

Often the red is contrasted by a strong, neighbouring black. One example of this kind of contrast, is the ?Southern Red Bishop? in her ?Orny ? Theology?.

For that matter, the ?Cardinal? in the same painting is another example of the same contrast. Regarding the title of this particular painting and its link to the subject: if one knows about birds, the connection is fairly obvious.

The names of all the birds depicted have an ecclesiastical connotation. Her work borders on the decorative, but it is held in check by her incredibly exact drawing.

?Self Portrait with 24 Chupa Cabras? is a Surrealist nightmare painted by Graham Foster. It is a square painting with about 25 smaller square paintings arranged within.

His self portrait is located in the middle of the painting, surrounded by paintings of 24 mythological, blood sucking, man-headed, birdlike creatures.

The subject is based upon a modern myth that originated in Puerto Rico, where farmers would find their animals dead from having had the blood sucked out of them from a wound in the neck. The term actually does mean ?goat sucker? and apparently the goat is the common animal on these small farms. To tell the truth, Graham Foster, in his self-portrait, does look kind of anaemic, as if he himself had been a victim of this devil-like creature as well.

Talking about mythological creatures: Chesley Trott has a wood carving entitled ?Phoenix?.

It is carved from a Bermuda Cedar stump and although rather abstracted, if one walks around it, it is possible to see a birdlike presence. Although on the heavy side, it does appear to be slowly rising.

I was reminded of the way vultures hang out to dry, after getting soaked with rain. They too, are on the heavy side when in that state and are unable to take off.

Lynn Morrell is exhibiting one of her magical, mythological bird wall-hangings. The bird, in appearance is peacock-like. The work is entitled ?Fine Feathers?, and is primarily in variations of blue.

In making this wall hanging, she uses traditional quilting techniques, which includes the use of such processes as appliqu? and piecing.

As always, her work is exceedingly well crafted and well thought out. Since her work uses quilting techniques, the question may well be asked: is it art or is it craft? My answer is that it is both. For me craft is the skill and care one puts into a work and if it is inspired, as hers is, it is also art. It should be without question. All good art is both art and craft.

There are two, small watercolour sketches by Emma Ingham-Dounouk in the show, each in its own way quite amusing.

One is of a flock of starlings congregating on electrical wires above the buildings of St. George?s. It is almost possible to hear the twitter and chatter of these noisy ?Birds of a Feather?.

The title, ?We?ve Got Our Wires Crossed Here?, is equally amusing. Mrs. Ingham-Dounouk is a fashion illustrator by training; thus her way of drawing, which brings to mind the skills that used to be required for this branch of art.

She first does a quick sketch, outlining the subject. The work is then finished by the addition of washes of watercolour, rapidly applied. This gives the work a sense of great liveliness.

This is a large exhibition; therefore I have found it difficult to include everyone, but I have tried to at least give a sense of the flavour of the exhibition. It ends today. Do try to see it. It is worth the effort.