Christina Baal

Number of birds met: 1,114

Newest bird: Connecticut Warbler

September 21, 2020

Number of birds drawn: 342

Christina Baal is a bird artist, writer, and naturalist whose dream is to meet and paint 10,000 different species of birds. After graduating from Bard College in 2014, she started her art business, Drawing 10,000 Birds, and has since traveled nonstop looking for birds. Most recently, she lived in a small Alaskan village where she got to watch brown bears in her backyard.

Christina loves going to bird festivals to show her artwork, lead trips, teach art, and spend time with the birding community. She has designed artwork for Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival, The Biggest Week in American Birding, New River Birding and Nature Festival, and New Jersey Audubon’s World Series of Birding. During the rest of the year, Christina works as an environmental educator and has recently started illustrating books including Once Upon a Feather: a Field Guide to Fantastic Birds and Lucy’s Life List.

Christina lives with her partner and adorable golden retriever. Her favorite birds are Yellow Warblers, Turkey Vultures, and California Condors. 

10,000 Birds: My Mission

I have loved drawing animals ever since I could hold a pencil. When I was younger, I would copy pictures from animal books, living vicariously through the experiences of others. But now, by looking for birds, I am the person having adventures and getting to see the most incredible wildlife and landscapes. More than that, though, by being able to see these things and meet each bird firsthand, I have discovered that each kind of bird has its own quirky personality and lifestyle. It is in these moments when the threads of our lives intertwine- those wondrous moments when my heart quickens as we coexist in this world together- I learn to see each bird for more than just my own prejudices would have me see. And it is in these moments that I also learn something about myself.

My ultimate goal is to see and draw all 10,000 species of birds in the world. Such a quest will bring me to places I could never even imagine and let me see things that will take my breath away. By the time I have seen them all, I will have visited every continent, traveled thousands of miles, encountered all sorts of wildlife, seen unspeakable beauty and met all sorts of people from all different walks of life. 

One of the most remarkable things that I have discovered through birding is that birds are a universal language. No matter where I go, when people see me with my binoculars they want to talk to me about the birds they have seen or hear about my adventures. I have met so many people through birding. Countless people come up to me to ask if we can take a walk together to look for birds. These winged creatures allow me to have conversations with people I have never met before because they are something the whole world can share. Therefore, I truly hope that my journey to find all of the birds of the world and the art that comes out of it will be the way in which I can connect with people to show them the awesomeness of the natural world, that we are irrevocably a part of it, and, ultimately, that we must work together with each other and the living creatures we live alongside to protect it.