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The Lecture (Edward O. Wilson)
Biologist Edward O. Wilson (born 1929), a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction, has been a leading force in the biodiversity movement since the 1980s. Trained as an entomologist specializing in ants, Wilson's work has taken him from New Guinea and Sri Lanka to the Smithsonian Institution. His groundbreaking study, Sociobiology:The New Synthesis, was published by Harvard University Press in 1975, sparking controversy. In the book, Wilson examines the biological basis of social behavior in all kinds of organisms, including vertebrates, and links those behaviors to evolutionary biology. The scientist's later work bridges the gap between science and the culture at large, as in Consilience: The Unity of Life (1998). He continues to write for a general audience and recently published Half-Earth: Our Planet's Fight for Life (2016).
This portrait shows Wilson in his office at Harvard University's Museum of Comparative Zoology. He is surrounded by his books, papers, and awards.
Nelson Shanks (1937–2015)
Oil on canvas, 2008–9
Gift of Ian M. and Annette P. Cumming |