A Vanishing Rachel Berwick On Display at the Salt Lake Art Center 20 South West Temple Dimensions: variable Materials: cast copal (amber), brass, lights, shadow The Passenger Pigeon, once the most plentiful species of bird to inhabit North America, it is now most famous for its loss. Flocks of thousands were often seen well into the 19th century. By 1907, this species was reduced to a handful of survivors and by 1910 all but one had died. Martha a twenty-five year old Passenger Pigeon in the Cincinnati Zoological Gardens, was the sole survivor of her species. Thus she remained until September 1, 1914 when Martha died, marking the end of the species. My installation is inspired by the manner in which the Passenger Pigeon (and particularly Martha) disappeared. It is comprised of four key elements; 550 cast amber passenger pigeons (cast from a preserved specimen), brass rods, light, and shadow. Amber bird casts are suspended on a series of thin brass rods. The rods are suspended vertically, at regular intervals, to form two rows that intersect in the middle of the space. Although each rod is the same length (extending from the ceiling almost to the floor) the number of bird casts placed on each rod vary. The bird casts are arranged to form four v-shapes that point to the middle of the space. The largest number of birds are placed on the outer most rods and the numbers gradually reduce on each successive rod as they get closer to the center. The center rod, where the two rows intersect, holds one single amber bird. Stage lights project from the four corners of the space causing the amber bird casts to glow while simultaneously creating shadows of the birds and rods upon the surrounding walls. As the viewers enter the space they, like the birds, project shadows. The shadows of the rods make reference to the bars of a cage.