 Richard A. Parks collection of bird illustrations
Collection DescriptionHistorical NoteRichard A. Parks is a nationally recognized ornithologist and artist of birds. Born in 1920, he is a Georgia native and a graduate of Technological High and the Georgia Institute of Technology. After service in the U.S. Navy in the South Pacific during World War II, he returned to Atlanta where he worked as an architect. He was editor from 1949 to 1950 of The Oriole, a journal of the Georgia Ornithological Society, and has long been an active member. In 1974 his painting Brown Thrasher and Cherokee Rose, depicting the state bird and state flower of Georgia was presented to Governer Jimmy Carter and now hangs in the Governor's Mansion. His painting of two doves was on the Georgia Wildlife Management Area stamp in 1984. In 1992 Parks returned to the Solomon Islands and painted many of its birds, and in 1994 the Solomon Islands government used some of these bird paintings on a series of postage stamps. Scope and ContentThe collection consists of hundreds of color paintings and drawings by bird artist Richard A. Parks. Subjects covered include North American birds, Solomon Islands birds, Naval-related subjects, and flora and fauna. Also included are correspondence and papers regarding his work on bird illustration but also touching on his Navy career and other topics. Also included among the materials are his multiple bird designs for the Atlanta Audubon Society T-shirt. Administrative InformationPreferred CitationRichard A. Parks collection, ms3396, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, The University of Georgia Libraries. Finding Aid PublicationFinding Aid prepared by Hargrett MS Staff, October 2011. Related Materials and SubjectsSubject Terms | ||||||||||||||||||