Description
Shoe Bill, oil on canvas
Creation year
early 1960s
Abu Markub is the name of this peculiar bird in its homeland, South Sudan, which means father of the shoe in English. We well remember Seppli, the somewhat lonely inhabitant of the former Africa House at Zurich Zoo, who stood almost motionless in the shallow water for hours, lurking for fish. He is painted in Fritz’s style of the early 1960s, isolated on a white background with clear lines and sharp contours.