Mark McNair Standing Wood Duck Drake

Mark S. McNair (b. 1950) Craddockville, VA, 2024 12 1/2 in. long

“Mark McNair is the dean of contemporary decoy carvers. We have all the great masters here at the Shelburne Museum: Albert Laing, Elmer Crowell, Charles 'Shang' Wheeler... and it really speaks to Mark's place within this field that he is the only living artist we have in the museum's collection.”

— Kory Rogers, The Francie and John Downing Senior Curator of American Art, Shelburne Museum, Vermont

This decoy is one of only three McNair stick-up wood ducks. It is pictured while being made in the April-May article on McNair in "Garden & Gun" magazine. The hollow bird has exceptional form, exquisite paint with combed vermiculation, carved primary feathers, and a diamond-shaped stick hole inlay. The underside of the original base is signed and inscribed.

Original paint with minimal wear.

Literature: Nic Brown, "Chesapeake Chops," Garden & Gun, April/May 2024, pp. 132-139, exact decoy illustrated with maker in workshop.