Becoming a Bird:
Hammond Museum & Japanese Stroll Garden
My solo exhibition of small sculptures based on bird myths was curated by Bibiana Huang Matheis in Summer 2021 for the Hammond Museum & Japanese Stroll Garden in North Salem, NY. The steel-wire-and-mixed-media sculptures emerged from my ongoing bird-figure investigations, including my Fulbright research in Taiwan.
The installation was designed for the enclosed worlds of six vitrines with arched or square glass doors, with several more flying free. Each of these works was inspired by a mythic image or narrative from China, Taiwan, or other parts of the world. The exhibition catalog includes the descriptive text that accompanied each piece.
To read these brief stories in pdf form, click here.
If you would like to purchase a physical copy of the catalog, click here.
Jingwei Bird Tries to Fill the Sea, 2021, steel, wire mesh, stones, 15” x 20” x 18”. Photo: Howard Goodman
Jingwei Bird Tries to Fill the Sea (vitrine view), 2021, steel, wire mesh, stones, mesh ribbon, 43" x 36" x 15" installation
Jingwei Bird Tries to Fill the Sea, 2021, steel, wire mesh, stones, 15” x 20” x 18”
Woman Riding an Egret, 2019, steel, wire mesh, 20” x 26” x 14”
Man and Child Riding a Phoenix (vitrine view), 2020, steel, wire mesh, 26” x 38” x 18”
Man and Child Riding a Phoenix (detail), 2020, steel, wire mesh, 26” x 38” x 18”
Magpie Bridge, 2020, Steel, wire mesh, recycled and handmade paper, 20” x 22” x 6” each
Migration Myths Caravan (vitrine view with four bird-figures), 2021, steel, wire mesh, enamel, feather, 43" x 36" x 15"
Migration Myths Caravan (view with three bird-figures), 2021, steel, wire mesh, enamel, 14" x 12" x 9"
Peruvian Moché Bird Runner, 2019, steel, wire mesh, enamel, 14” x 6” x 10”
Japanese Tengu, 2021, steel, wire mesh, enamel, 14” x 9” x 6”
Assyrian Genie, 2021, steel, wire mesh, enamel, 12” x 8” x 12”
Paiwan Mountain Hawk Eagle, 2021, steel, wire mesh, feather, 10” x 16” x 4”
Conference of the Birds (vitrine view), 2021, steel wire, birdcage, handmade & recycled paper, plastic mesh, 43" x 36" x 15" (For specific bird sculptures, see Refeathered Birds under Small Sculptures.)
Pink Spoonbill flock, 2021, steel wire, plastic bag, approx. 12” x 9” x 16” each of five