{"product_id":"mrs-ballards-parrots-9780810958869","title":"Mrs. Ballard's Parrots","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"When Im really old and cant use myself anymore  this is what Ill be doing.\" -Cindy Sherman  \"Not only was I enthralled with Mrs. Ballards Parrots  I was slightly jealous that these creatures had a better sense of style than me.\" -Isaac Mizrahi  In the late 1960s  Long Island housewife Alba Ballard decided to sew a little outfit for one of her many pet parrots. Soon she began staging elaborate productions  casting her lavishly costumed birds in scenes from popular movies  TV shows  and historical events-all preserved in photographs by Alba and her husband. One minute  parrots were tiny  winged incarnations of such luminaries as Sonny and Cher and General George Patton; another  yellow and green macaws in leather jackets rode on miniature motorcycles reenacting scenes from Easy Rider. Word of Albas quirky creations spread  and with her feathered cast she eventually appeared on Late Night with David Letterman  Saturday Night Live  and even in Woody Allens film Broadway Danny Rose.  In 1992 a small collection of her photographs turned up in the Swiss home of Elizabeth Taylor  and they soon reached the hands of Arne Svenson. Although Alba died in 1994  her fantasy world lives on in these pictures-a bizarre yet endearing mix of artistry  kitsch  and humor-which form the heart of this irresistible book. AUTHOR BIO: Arne Svenson is a New York-based photographer whose work has been shown extensively in the United States and Europe. He is the author of Prisoners and Sock Monkeys.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45953347551285,"sku":"ByrdShop_0810958864","price":21.22,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780810958869.jpg?v=1788185972","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/mrs-ballards-parrots-9780810958869","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}