Artist Laurel Roth Hope designs multi-coloured bird sweaters each fitting the average urban pigeon. Her creativity with yarn and needle is for all to see, yet the slightly comical project has a bleak warning; each suit symbolises an extinct bird species and stresses the need of reclaiming lost biodiversity. Hope fits her garments onto hand-carved pigeon mannequins to imply that any species can thrive in a human-made environment without intervention.
Hope’s art is inspired from her previous experiences as a natural-resource conservator and wildlife park ranger. She explores themes of extinction, consumerism and environmental harm. You can visit this gallery to see more of her Biodiversity Reclamation Suits.
Urban Pigeons: Dodo II, 2014. Crocheted yarn, handmade pigeon mannequin, walnut stand.
Paradise Parrot and Guadalupe Caracara, 2013. Crocheted yarn, hand carved pigeon mannequins, walnut stands.
Concord, 2008. Cotton, silk, bamboo, wool, and acrylic. Blended yarn mannequin: basswood, acrylic paint, gouache, glass, pewter, and walnut.
Bachman’s Warbler, 2015. Crocheted yarn, handmade resin pigeon mannequin, walnut stand.
Carolina Parakeet, 2009. Crocheted yarn, hand carved pigeon mannequin, walnut stand.
Carolina Parakeet (detail)
Passenger Pigeon II, 2014. Crocheted yarn, handmade pigeon mannequin, walnut stand.
Seychelles Parakeet, 2015. Crocheted yarn, handmade pigeon mannequin, walnut stand.
Magazine & Art Gallery