Springfield, Illinois, artist Kevin Veara paints birds against eye-popping backdrops of imagined, mutant hybrid flora. His paintings comment on the extraordinary beauty of these birds that are forced to coexist or become extinct in an ever-changing modern environment. Some of his paintings also include the birdcalls in bold, glowing, cursive phonetics, a nod to both early 19th century naturalist studies and tattoo art.

Veara holds a BFA from what is now the University of Illinois Springfield and an MFA from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. He is an amateur naturalist and expert birder as well as a guide of local bird watching tours. He is also a well-respected tattoo artist.