Cootastrophe, named after the day where all pigeons have been massacred in the UK and supposedly replaced by surveillance devices, is inspired by the 2017 satirical conspiracy theory Birds Aren’t Real which posits that all birds have been replaced by the US government. This kinetic sound sculpture draws it form from various bird deterrent mechanisms as well as commonly seen terminal boxes that sit above traffic lights and pedestrian crossings. This mechanism imitates a series of bird calls through the swaying motion of the black whistles, as if a flock of birds were flying by. 

 

This sculpture imagines a potential future where the global bird population declines, and a rise of avian surveillance creates a necessity for such mechanism. It may be a deterrent, or it may be an emulator for nature and ‘natural’ sounds. It may also be a magnet for birds as we cannot fully understand their language. At first, the sounds appear ‘natural’ and bird-like, but as the pattern of movements and sounds repeats, it becomes more robotic and sinister whilst still being over engineered and absurd.

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Exhibited at Five Years as a part of the Fishy Business group show.

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