The “Bird Girl” : The Story of a Sculpture by Sylvia Shaw Judson

In the spring of 1994, a bronze sculpture of a little girl standing in scenic Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, became famous when it was featured on the cover of the popular book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. That demure little girl holding up twin bowls became a national sensation, an object so often sought by tourists, the sculpture had to be removed, first to a private home, then to a museum. This is the story of that sculpture, the “Bird Girl”, and the talented Chicago-based artist, Sylvia Shaw Judson, who created it. Additional sculptures by Judson illustrated and discussed here include “Gardener” -- currently residing in the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden at the White House -- and "Monument to the Quaker Martyr Mary Dyer" on the lawn of the Massachusetts State House in Boston. The text includes Judson’s history and her works, illustrated with twenty-seven images. This book is essential to all with an appreciation of the arts.

In the spring of 1994, a bronze sculpture of a little girl standing in scenic Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, became famous when it was featured on the cover of the popular book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

That demure little girl holding up twin bowls became a national sensation, an object so often sought by tourists, the sculpture had to be removed, first to a private home, then to a museum.

This is the story of that sculpture, the “Bird Girl”, and the talented Chicago-based artist, Sylvia Shaw Judson, who created it. Additional sculptures by Judson illustrated and discussed here include “Gardener” -- currently residing in the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden at the White House -- and "Monument to the Quaker Martyr Mary Dyer" on the lawn of the Massachusetts State House in Boston. The text includes Judson’s history and her works, illustrated with twenty-seven images.

This book is essential to all with an appreciation of the arts.