- — December 21, 2009
Caution: Wild Birds Crossing. Shannon Eakins, artist.
Selected by Martin Gengenbach, Ellen Ito and Heide Fernandez-Llamazarez, directors, The Telephone Room
I Made This for Us, 2008, embroidered leather falconry glove, hood and bronze whistle
Curator's Statement
That moment when you see a crow on the sidewalk and you both stop short, eyes locked . . . is this a greeting? An acknowledgment? A silent challenge? Shannon Eakins’ artwork reflects upon such moments of secret communication and explores our interactions with wild animals: Do we want to tame them? Engage with them? Live among them undetected?— T.T.R.
Artist's Statement
“In Tacoma, peregrine falcons have nested on the Murray Morgan Bridge and, more recently, on the cornices of many of the buildings that surround us downtown. Our trash has become the diet of their prey (pigeons), and the falcons themselves have been integrated seamlessly into our built environment, claiming it as their own — concealing themselves, hunting, eating, breeding. The falcons circle us but are not our pets. They circle us, but I am not sure if they are wild or not. Are they pointing towards new ways for us to activate our own environment? Does their success justify our departure from the natural world? Do the tactics and devices of falconry offer us any solace or direction? In these images, I am attempting to lure a falcon closer by making exquisite (to me) falconry gear.” — S.E.
