Why Are Tropical Birds Popping Up All Over Brooklyn?
A Colombian artist brings her native species to the city to show how exotic climate change can get.
When a Painted Bunting made a high-profile appearance in Brooklyn鈥檚 Prospect Park last December, birders and non-birders alike descended on the wintry scene to catch a glimpse of the wayward avian. But Colombian artist Tatiana Arocha found the songbird鈥檚 impromptu visit to New York particularly ominous. 鈥Strange juxtapositions like this are becoming commonplace in the wake of rising temperatures across the globe,鈥 she .
Drawing inspiration from the bunting鈥檚 story, Arocha decided to launch a public-art movement earlier this spring, with an aim to install nearly 400 cutouts of tropical birds in trees and fences throughout Brooklyn鈥檚 industrial terrain. The life-sized illustrations of Colombian species, including the Yellow-crowned Amazon, Andean Cock-of-the-rock, and Sparkling Violetear, are meant to draw attention to the way climate change is influencing birds鈥 migrations and reshaping their native habitats. While Arocha鈥檚 portfolio generally consists of large-scale murals, her work has always touted the wildlife and scenery of her native home in Bogota. With 鈥淭ropical Birds鈥 she honors that practice, but also moves beyond natural landscapes and calls attention to a more abstract and pervasive threat.
Each silhouette is made from lasercut wood and gold paint, offering a welcome contrast to cracked concrete and weather-stained buildings. Arocha's greatest hope, however, is that the cutouts鈥 presence will spark a conversation about the impact climate change is having on actual birds, like the Painted Bunting. 鈥淭he birds may be beautiful,鈥 she writes on her website, 鈥渂ut do they really belong here?鈥 In other words, as the world around us unravels, even the loveliest disruptions deserve a closer look.
Looking for the "Tropical Birds" of Brooklyn? Find them using . If you're looking to meet the artist, Arocha will be leading a walking art tour at the Brooklyn Navy Yard on June 18 and July 23. She will also be at Queens Botanical Garden's Festival de las Flores on June 26, and will teach a drawing workshop there on July 16.