Above: "Junco," a watercolor painting by Gilbert Boese, created while he was in the WPA, ca. 1940. I wasn't able to find any definitive information on Boese on the Internet or in newspaper archives, but a 2007 obituary reports: "Boese, Thomas Gilbert Wildlife Artist Age 64 Passed away Monday, November 12, 2007 in Region's Hospital after an extended illness. He is preceded in death by his father, Gilbert R. Boese, also an accomplished artist..." And a web page on MyHeritage notes a Gilbert Robert Boese who lived from 1911 to 1970. In any event, the Gilbert Boese who painted "Junco" was a prolific artist in the WPA, painting all sorts of wildlife - moose, ducks, owls, caribou, mink, woodpecker, bobcat, fisher cat, and much more (see a collection of his work at the Minnesota Historical Society). He also did work for the WPA's Index of American Design (see "Gilbert Boese," National Gallery of Art"). Image courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society, used here under license.
Above: Dark-Eyed Juncos in West Virginia. In the winter time, they forage on the ground like little snow chickens, as many as 20 or 30, pecking at the ground for any morsels of food they can find (which I've been known to supply from time to time). Photo by Brent McKee, 2013.
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