They are long gone, but not quite forgotten—at least by artist Todd McGrain or anyone who views his latest work. McGrain’s “Lost Bird Project,” now on exhibit at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, commemorates five extinct bird species, casting each one as a six-foot-tall bronze sculpture.

McGrain, an associate professor of art at Cornell University, wants these larger-than-life figures to jog our collective memory about creatures missing from the world because of human carelessness.

McGrain got the idea for the Lost Bird Project after reading stories about extinct birds he had never heard of before. “It’s difficult to read those stories and not conclude we’re missing something by not having these birds any more,” McGrain says.

Watch the accompanying video to learn more about the Lost Bird Project and its artistic tribute to the Passenger Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet, Heath Hen, Great Auk, and Labrador Duck.

The Lost Bird Project will be on display in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology observatory through the end of March 2009.

More Information

• Todd McGrain's Lost Bird Project website
• Read more about the project in this Cornell Chronicle story

--Pat Leonard. Image: Melissa McGrain