Biodiversity Reclamation Suit: Carolina Parakeet

Copied Laurel Roth Hope, Biodiversity Reclamation Suit: Carolina Parakeet, 2009, suit: cotton, silk, bamboo, wool, and acrylic blended yarn mannequin: basswood, acrylic paint, gouache, glass, pewter, and walnut, 9 x 8 x 13 in. (22.9 x 20.3 x 33 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Joyce Schwartz in honor of Judith S. Weisman, museum purchase, and museum purchase from friends of the Renwick Gallery, 2013.76.2A-B, © 2009, Laurel Roth Hope

Artwork Details

Title
Biodiversity Reclamation Suit: Carolina Parakeet
Artist
Date
2009
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
9 x 8 x 13 in. (22.9 x 20.3 x 33 cm)
Copyright
© 2009, Laurel Roth Hope
Credit Line
Gift of Joyce Schwartz in honor of Judith S. Weisman, museum purchase, and museum purchase from friends of the Renwick Gallery
Mediums
Mediums Description
suit: cotton, silk, bamboo, wool, and acrylic blended yarn mannequin: basswood, acrylic paint, gouache, glass, pewter, and walnut
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — bird — parrot
Object Number
2013.76.2A-B
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2013.76.2A-B

Artwork Description

Hope uses humor to address the serious subject of species extinction in her Biodiversity Reclamation Suits. These suits allow common rock pigeons to masquerade as extinct North American birds -- if not actually to "reclaim" biodiversity, then at least to give the appearance of it. One can't help but smile, imagining these birds clad in their bright, borrowed feathers roaming our city streets, even as we note that the damage we do to our environment cannot always be undone.

Connections: Contemporary Craft at the Renwick Gallery, 2019

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40 Under 40: Craft Futures
40 Under 40: Craft Futures examines the expanding role of the handmade in contemporary culture through the work of the next generation of artists. Organized in celebration of the fortieth anniversary of the Renwick Gallery, the Smithsonian's branch museum for American craft and decorative arts, this project gathers forty makers born since 1972, the year the Renwick opened to the public. Apparent are rapidly evolving notions of craft, ranging from traditional media, such as ceramics and jewelry, to fields as varied as sculpture, industrial design, performance and installation art, fashion design, sustainable manufacturing, and mathematics.