The spring bird migration makes me think of the work of the Chinese artist Chao Shao-an (1905-1998). Chao did a number of beautiful studies of birds as well as insects that are remarkable in their spontaneity and brevity of brushstroke. Although Chinese painting has a long tradition of depicting intimate studies of nature--such as birds, bamboo stalks, and flowers—Chao did a series of works that are unusually inventive in their composition and energy. It almost looks like he’s thrown ink across the paper. But despite the chaotic looseness and abstractness of his brushstroke, Chao paints with extraordinary control; he perfectly balances the elements of his painting against the white space of the background. He once observed, “Be it the sturdy bamboo, the tender willow, the rambling vine or the splendorous flower, all can be expressed through the stroke of a single brush.” More of his work can be seen at San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum, https://searchcollection.asianart.org/search/Chao%20Shao-an