Portraits of Love

ATHOS MENABONI was born in 1895 in Livorna, Italy. He came to New York in 1920 and later moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where he continued his chosen specialty, the painting of murals. These murals have won him nationwide fame as well as numerous awards.

In the early thirties, Mr. Menaboni completed his first serious bird painting...a momentous choice. He found that he could now combine his skill as an artist with his lifetime hobby, the study of birds. In the years since, he has painted more than one hundred and fifty species of American birds. These paintings may be found in such notable collections as those of the DuPonts, the Calloways, the Marshall Fields, the Ben Fairlesses and the Robert Woodruffs. They may also be seen in major museums and can be found collected in such far off countries as Japan, Belgium, Scotland, Italy and South Africa. Athos Menaboni's bird prints and china plates grace the homes of thousands of art and bird lovers. His book, Menaboni Birds, a collector's item, is included among the best fifty books of 1950 as determined by the American Graphic Society.

He prefers the simple life with his wife, Sara, and his work, in the wooded sanctuary “Valley Ombrosa”, his veritable paradise. Even though Mr. Menaboni does not go to the outside world, the outside world does come to him, and is welcome... but on his terms. These terms are simple: one must respect and not interfere with his work, and understand the feelings that the Menabonis have for birds and all small creatures. This feeling is, quite simply, love.