Featured in this lot is a hand-carved, sugar pine wood bird done by Helena, Montana artist, Chris Linn-Hatcher in the early 2000s. Chris is a self taught artist. Her close observation of birds in their natural habitat is reflected in her art which was inspired by her love of nature and expansive vistas. Although she was raised in the Midwest, she has more than 20 years of residence in Montana. She started out creating ornaments and miniature birds out of clay which inspired her to create beautiful wooden decoys. Each bird is painstakingly carved by hand, but painting is her true love, and it is evident in her work. The birds have at least three or four layers of paint, which allows for exquisite feather detail. It takes a month to complete her swan, which is painted in seven layers. The bluebird is from the Lakeside Decoys company and is from the "Lil Fat Birds" collection. The bird shows good details in the paint and shows colors of light and dark brown, white and grey throughout. The beak and head are finely carved and the eyes are constructed of glass. The bottom of the bird is signed by Chris herself and reads, "Antique bluebird by Chris Hatcher" and shows two stickers with the first reading, "Lakeside Decoys Lil Fat Birds 5320 Riverview Dr. Helena, MT 59602" and the second reading, "Made in Montana USA". The bird shows good condition overall with little to no wear and no obvious signs of damage. The bird measures 6 3/8" L x 3 1/8" W and weighs approximately 8 ounces.*