Monday, September 11, 2023

Little Bit


I was walking through the barn and saw a tiny baby bird on the floor in the middle of the aisle. I picked it up. Although cold and not moving, it was still breathing. I closed it in my hand to keep it warm and finished my chores. Driving home, it began to chirp.

At home, I set him up in a bowl on the kitchen counter, under a heat lamp. That night I fed him dog food – human grade, lightly cooked. At first he hesitated, but after a few tries, he gaped for food. The next day I added mealworms, wax worms, and soaked insectivore diet.

He grew quickly, and graduated to a heated reptile cage, where he perched on a beanbag. Guesses as to what kind of bird he was included barn swallow, starling or sparrow. Now that his feathers are in, it is clear he is a sparrow.

He began to flap his wings, and one day took off flying. At that point, he graduated to his "big boy" cage. A cage large enough for him to fly from perch to perch, explore some toys, and bathe. 

At this point I started offering him a dish with a variety of foods which included finch seed, insectivore diet, mealworms, kitten kibble, dried black soldier fly larva, fresh fruit/veggies, etc. He reached a point where he refused to be hand fed, and now eats heartily from his dish. 

Whenever he sees me, he "vibrates", moving his wings rapidly to say he's happy to see me. And he has started to sing.

He will have his first moult in a month or so and I will know if he is a boy or girl. As he is imprinted on me, he cannot be released and would not be accepted by a wild flock. But he is happy and I play him a CD of birdsongs in the morning. My cockatoos love to watch him, regarding him as BirdTV. He doesn't seem to mind.


Welcome home, Little Bit.

Wednesday, October 19, 2022

An Exhibition of Paintings by Karen Ackoff Are on Display at South Suburban College

© 2017, Karen Ackoff.

An Exhibition of Paintings by Karen Ackoff Are on Display at South Suburban College (South Holland, IL) - The Art & Design Department of South Suburban College (SSC) is pleased to announce a special guest artist exhibition entitled "Murmurations" by Karen Ackoff. The paintings will display in the Photo Four Gallery at SSC from Tuesday, October 18 to Thursday, November 17, 2022. On Monday, October 24, 2022, from 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm, SSC will host an artist talk in the Photo Four Gallery, located on the college's fourth floor.

Ackoff stated, "When large numbers of birds fly together, they swirl in a repeating, coordinating, changing pattern. "Murmuration," derives from the wings' sound, occurs when birds flutter together. My work speaks through a network of small brush strokes like a murmuration. Together they form shapes and shadows that gradually unfold as a painting develops. My work whispers - it does not shout. My drawings are completed with care and control. Yet, they are not without passion. The passion is in each object - its shape, subtle color, and tonalities. In the stories the object tells as brush or silver moves over the ground's surface. Teasing out inherent beauty with focus and patience. I whisper back."

The SSC Photo Four Gallery is open Monday - Thursday, 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. The galleries are closed on weekends and holidays. The art exhibitions and receptions are free to the public. For additional information, please contact Pamela Planera at (708) 596-2000, ext. 2211, or email at pplanera@ssc.edu. SSC is located at 15800 South State Street in South Holland Illinois.

By Silence DoGood, October 11, 2022
From the Southland Journal


Tuesday, October 18, 2022

The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators Great Lakes Chapter Exhibit

© 1984, Karen Ackoff.
The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators Great Lakes Chapter is on exhibit at the Indian Prairie Public Library in Darien, IL through October 27. Contributing artists: Karen Ackoff, Kathleen Garness, Nancy Halliday, April Neander and Carrie Carlson. Stop by the library and check it out.