Extinct bird sculptures land at Bellevue Botanical Garden

Published September 9 2024

Conservation education offered during installation's year-long stay

The Bellevue Botanical Garden will host a dramatic art installation - large-scale bronze sculptures of five extinct species of birds - starting in mid-September.

The Lost Bird Project, created by artist Todd McGrain, immortalizes the passenger pigeon, the Carolina parakeet, the Labrador duck, the great auk and the heath hen - North American birds all gone by 1932. The sculptures, each roughly four to six feet high, will be on display in the Urban Meadow near the visitor center for a year.

"For the Bellevue Botanical Garden, the display reflects our mission and is a catalyst for a year of learning programs focused on conservation and habitat preservation, along with creating a special appeal for ornithology, which is the study of birds, and, of course, the connection to the plants and habitats we feature at the Garden," said James Gagliardi, director of the Botanical Garden.

That programming, at the Aaron Education Center and other locations at the Garden, will kick off with a festival Saturday, Oct. 19, 2-4 p.m. The event will include a free panel discussion with McGrain and local artists concerning art with a purpose and a screening ($5 admission) of "The Lost Bird Project" documentary followed by a question-and-answer session with McGrain and Nick Bayard, executive director of BirdNote.

Throughout the run of the exhibit, the Eastside Audubon Society will host monthly bird walks at the garden.

Since McGrain completed three sets of the sculptures in 2012, they have been on display at museums and nature centers across the U.S., highlighting the need for conservation. One of the sets features each of the individual sculptures on permanent display at the location related to that particular bird's decline.

The Bellevue Botanical Garden - 53 acres of curated gardens and natural lands open free daily dawn to dusk - is one of Bellevue's most popular parks. In addition to the displays of flora tended in part by volunteers with the Bellevue Botanical Garden Society and other groups, the BBG offers an array of plant-related education throughout the year.

This exhibit is supported by the BBG Society and funded by individual donors. More information about the exhibit and related programs is available at the BBG Society.