Ornithology

(1994-95)

Ornithology 1 is an interactive, multi-media installation exploring birdwatching and bird sound in the context of ecology, scientific classification, bird extinction, voyeurism and surveillance. The four primary objects in the show, in sequence of encounter: 1) a drafting table with embedded monitor and superimposed list of bird proverbs, binoculars and headphones connected to a monitor displaying a caged American crow repeating the salient questions of his imprisonment: “Who, what, where, why” taught to him by a third grader. 2) circular, wooden cage with 64 four-inch speakers-in-the-round emitting bird sounds when prompted by a motion detector. 3) spinning seat in the cage allowing the viewer (or performer) to turn through the gridded sound field. 4) a performance deck at the far end of the gallery.