Article

Wildlife Artist

Painter Jane Kim’s large murals help people connect with nature

By Mara Grunbaum
From the March/April 2022 Issue
Lexile: 770L; 540L
Download and Print
An artist painting a bird

COURTESY INK DWELL

Kim finishes a painting of a secretary bird.

As you read, think about why illustrators are important to science research.  

What shape are a robin’s feathers? What shade of orange is a monarch butterfly? These are questions that artist Jane Kim thinks about. She paints murals, or wall-sized paintings, of plants and animals.

Person smiling

COURTESY INK DWELL

Jane Kim

Kim’s most famous project is a two-story mural called The Wall of Birds in the visitor center at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in Ithaca, New York. Kim was invited to create the mural during an internship at the Cornell Lab in 2014. The painting celebrates the world’s variety of birds and includes more than 240 bird species! It took Kim almost three years to finish.

Kim also creates eye-catching outdoor murals of animals that migrate, or travel long distances at regular times of the year. She paints each species in several places along its migration path, which can span hundreds of miles. Kim recently spoke to SuperScience about her art.

What led you to become an artist?

A painting of a bird

COURTESY INK DWELL

Magpie goose

I was obsessed with plants and animals as a kid. I also did a lot of art projects. In high school, I took drawing and sculpture classes. I decided I wanted to go to art school.

In art school, I experimented with different subjects. I took some classes in scientific illustration, a type of drawing that communicates science concepts. I realized I wanted to make large-scale art in places where many people could see it.

How did you make The Wall of Birds?

Painting of three colorful birds

COURTESY INK DWELL

 Gouldian finches 

The lab gave me a list of bird species to include. I started by researching what each one looked like. I looked at photos and watched videos. I also studied birds in natural history museums.

Next, I sketched each bird on paper. Scientists looked at the sketches. They gave me feedback. I revised each sketch until it looked right. I scanned it into a computer. Then I printed a life-sized version. The ostrich printout was 2.7 meters (9 feet) tall!

A team of artists helped me. We traced the drawings onto the wall. I chose base colors for each bird. Other artists filled them in. Then I painted the details.

What has been a challenge in your work?

A lot of planning goes into a mural, but you can’t plan for everything. I painted an outdoor mural of migrating butterflies in Orlando, Florida, in February. It’s usually sunny there, but that winter was wet and cold. It was so humid that the paint wouldn’t stick to the wall! We had to wait until the weather changed. I learned to be flexible after that.

Artist painting a giant monarch butterfly

COURTESY INK DWELL

Kim paints a 3,500-square-foot mural of monarch butterflies in Orlando, Florida.

What do you hope people take away from your art?

I want my art to help people see that we’re all connected to the natural world. People tell me they pay more attention to plants or animals after seeing my murals. If my work makes people care about nature, I consider that a win.

Text-to-Speech