Community members are invited to learn about avian artworks at A Brief History of Bird Illustration and Painting, 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 25 in Fleischmann Auditorium at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.

The evening will feature an illustrated presentation by nationally acclaimed bird artist Michael DiGiorgio. It is presented by the Santa Barbara Audubon Society and the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.

DiGiorgio will survey the art of painting birds since the 19th century, both as fine art and as illustrations for field guides.

The talk will cover such artists as John Gould and John James Audubon and their contributions to the field of ornithology. It will show the evolution from early avian artists to more modern painters like Louis Fuertes, Don Eckelberry, Roger Tory Peterson, Albert Gilbert, and Guy Tudor.

DiGiorgio will discuss his own life as a bird artist and the methods he uses to create vibrant paintings and assure accurate illustrations.

His paintings and drawings have appeared in nature books and journals, such as “Birds of Brazil,” vol. 1&2, “Birds of Honduras,” “Breeding Bird Atlas of Connecticut,” “New York State Breeding Bird Atlas,” and “The Narrow Edge” by Deborah Cramer.

DiGiorgio worked on revising the “Peterson Guide to Birds” from 2007-12, and from 2016-18 created artwork for a new addition to the western guide adding the birds of Hawaii.

Committed to painting from life, DiGiorgio has traveled extensively to create field sketches of birds, plants and habitat from Central and South America, the West Indies, Trinidad, and the Outer Islands of Britain.

His numerous trips to the western United States and various national parks have allowed him to record a full range of American bird life.

In 2005, DiGiorgio received the first ever Eckelberry Endowment Award from the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia in recognition of his bird illustration work.

For more, call the Santa Barbara Audubon Society, 805-964-1468.