A Little Mermaid
A Little Mermaid
*Auctioned for the benefit of the Atlantic Wildfowl Heritage Museum at the De Witt Cottage, Virginia Beach, VA, September 20th, 2025.
Colin McNair (b. 1986)
Kingston, MA, 2025
51" in. long, 35" in.
This life-size wall-mount carving of a young mermaid is the first of its kind by any McNair. The piece exhibits a suite of relief carving techniques in the tail, hair, and giant scallop shell. Made with four-piece construction of one-inch vertical-grain cedar using dowel joinery and mother-of-pearl bracing. The body is finished in metallic gold. It is built and painted to reside indoors or weather outdoors and is rigged to hang flat against a wall.
Bluefin Tuna
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2015
oil on cedar, 49 1/2 inches long
Brown Trout Trophy
Cambridge, MA, 2011
oil on mahogany, 26 inches
private collection
Right Whale and Humpbacked Whales
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2015
oil on cedar , 52 inches long (top)
Mahi Mahi or Dorado
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2017
oil on mahogany and copper, 36 inches long
sold
The "Happy Banana" Humpback Whale
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2016
oil on cedar, 24 inches long
Minke Whale
Cambridge, MA, 2013
oil on carved cedar, 37 inches
sold
Orca
Cambridge, MA, 2012
oil on carved pine, 23 inches
sold
Sperm Whale
Cambridge, MA, 2013
oil on carved pine, 26 inches
sold
White Sperm Whale
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA
oil on Alaskan yellow cedar with aluminum teeth, 26 inches long, 2 inches deep
Sold
Minke
Cambridge, MA, 2012
oil on mahogany, 21 inches
sold
Swordfish
Craddockville, VA, 2008
oil on cedar, 9 feet 9 inches
sold
Little Tunny
Oil on Spanish cedar and copper
35 in.
For sale at the Audubon Gallery, Charleston, South Carolina.
Leaping Red Fox
Colin S. McNair
Kingston, MA, 2025
39 ½ in. long
Sold
Wild Turkey Decoy
Kingston, MA, 2020
31 inches long
Oil paint on a hollowed cedar body. The head is removable with a mortise-and-tenon joint.
Sold
Long-Billed Curlew Weathervane
Cambridge, MA, 2016
Oil on cedar, cherry, and lead, 36 in. long
Sold
Atlantic Puffin
Cambridge, MA, 2016-17
Oil on cedar, lifesize
Available through The Audubon Gallery, Charleston, SC
Conservation has driven the design and usage of puffin decoys. The decoys are set on historical nesting sites to guide reintroduced birds back to the colony. Learn more here.
King Penguin
Colin S. McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2016
oil on wood, 9 inches tall
Sold
Preening King Penguin
Colin S. McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2016
oil on wood, 8 inches tall
Sold
Penguin Tap Handle
Cambridge, MA, 2013
oil on cedar, 7 inches
NFS
Screech Owl Tap Handle
Cambridge, MA, 2015
oil on cedar, 7 inches high
Sold
Hooded Merganser
c. 2007
Sold
Eider
Craddockville, VA, 2008
oil on carved cedar
Sold
Stephen and Cinnie O'Brien Collection
Mourning Dove
Cambridge, MA, 2013
oil on carved cedar
private collection, Colorado
Tern
Cambridge, MA, 2014
oil on carved cedar and oak, lifesize
sold
Eider Trio
Craddockville, VA, 2007
oil on cedar
Private Collection, Cape Cod
Preening Eider
Craddockville, VA, 2007
oil on cedar
Private collection, Cape Cod
Sickle-Bill Curlew Weathervane
c. 2013
Mermaid and Right Whale on Barn
Photo: Kingston, MA, 2025
Board
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA, 2014-16
Single maple block with soft oil finish, 14 by 24 inches
1 of 3
Dough Knife
Colin McNair
Cambridge, MA, c. 2013
Maple, 16 inches long
Two Spoons
Mahogany and Tiger Maple Spoons
Tiger Maple Spoon
Cambridge, MA, 2014
oiled tiger maple, 15 inches
private collection
Mahogany Spoon
Cambridge, MA, 2014
oiled mahogany, 15 inches
destroyed
"The Admiral"
Cambridge, MA, 2011
weathered cedar in table
Crab
Cambridge, MA 2011
weathered cedar in table (detail)
Summer 2016
Winter 2016
Getting ready for Menagerie at the Audubon Gallery in Charleston, SC.
Whales and Fish
Birds
Et Cetera