JOHN COSTIN STUDIO

The elegant Great Egret is the most common egrets in the North America. During breeding season, it grows long feathery plumes called aigrettes to attract a mate. These feathers are sprayed out from the egrets back to display its physical prowess. These wispy feathers were once used as decorations in fashionable ladies’ apparel, so the egrets became a target for plume hunters. Thanks to one of the first conservation movements in the U.S., they became a protected species. It was created with four copper plates and each piece is hand-colored with transparent watercolors.