A Bird's Eye View

This piece slowly changed during the course of the exhibition, using birds as the agent of change.

The three dimensional letters were made in the manner of simple bird feeders filled with peanuts. The letters seemed to float above the beds - the name Darwin written in the air amongst the flowers. Over the two months the birds ate the nuts and eventually removed the name.

Darwin (1809 -1882) was a natural scientist who relied exclusively on the observation of nature. In his book 'On the Origin of Species'. He challenged the accepted view that the universe and all in it were the creation of an omnipotent being. Darwin's view not only challenged the concept of God, but also man's position in the general scheme of things.

It is quite possible that sometime in our planet’s future mankind will disappear and with it our history. Birds may continue to eat peanuts but the importance of Darwin will become irrelevant. The naming and understanding of things is exclusive to mankind, but not essential to the continuation of the universe. I enjoy this confrontation of our small but self-important selves with the relentless scale of nature (on a cosmic level) and its disregard for our existence.

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