On the road to wisdom, behave like a raven and observe everything carefully! – Mehmet Murat Ildan
The raven (Corvus corax) is an intelligent, gregarious bird that exhibits a noteworthy variety of social behaviors. For 24 years, Vermont artist and graphic designer Linda Mirabile has watched the raven families that inhabit her woodlands, often observing them from her studio aerie. She observes the interaction of the birds with each other and with other species and is familiar with their habits, their family units, and how they communicate and associate with each other, as well as how they respond to her presence. In Screamin’ Raven, Mirabile depicts a raven’s bold personality. The red string, which appears often in Mirabile’s work, suggests an enigmatic restraint or conflict.
“Birds provide us with a universal language,” says Mirabile. “Everyone has a story about a bird – whether it is about a bird they saw at the Walmart parking lot or at the top of the White Mountains.” Her paintings reflect her great attention to and admiration of the natural world, and through her work as an artist and graphic designer, she strives to raise awareness of conservation and environmental issues.
Linda Mirabile can be reached through her website. She is co-curator of the upcoming traveling exhibition opening in fall 2025, A Critical Balance, which focuses on endangered species of Kenya’s Amboseli National Park.