" MERGANSER DUCKLING - BRONZE "
Robert Bateman

250 Signed & Numbered Bronze
4" high
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" This sculpture was made as a reference for my painting, Merganser Family in Hiding.
I had no photographic reference, and museum specimens of baby birds leave
something to be desired. Typical museum specimens are smooth and elongated
so that they can fit into storage trays. Baby waterfowl are far from shapeless;
they are very sculptural in form. Feathers do not disguise the various pieces of
their anatomy. The coating of fuzz, if anything, exaggerates the concave and
convex forms. The living bird is a little work of art of its own. Mergansers are,
of course, a member of the duck family. The main difference between
mergansers and other ducks is the elongated bill with a slightly crooked tip and
a row of teeth along the sides. This makes it an admirable fish feeder.
Virtually every summer since I was eight years old, I have been visiting a
particular lake in north country. The main breeding duck in the area is the
American merganser. Each summer we look forward to the little parade of
mothers and young making their way around the shoreline. They are feeding
on baby fish, which have conveniently timed their hatching to inadvertently aid
in the merganser’s growth. At the first sign of danger, the mother makes a
low noise, and the whole family goes into hiding. As a boy, I sometimes did
something I would now forbid my children to do. I would follow them in a canoe
to get a better look. On one occasion I caught one of the nestlings and did a
quick little painting of it. I then found the family and put it among the rocks
where the others were hiding, so I am sure the story had a happy ending.
It gives me a sense of satisfaction to know that this little painting done at
the age of 15 was my best source of reference for the sculpture and
painting I did over 30 years later." - Robert Bateman

  

Merganser Duckling Bronze - Robert Bateman

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