The official Aves of New York State may be the Eastern Bluebird, but the undeniable bird of New York City is the pigeon. They are New Yorkers through and through, and last week the city’s Homo sapiens turned out to celebrate their Columba livia compatriots. Stewards of the West Side’s High Line Park said the idea came after they noticed an uptick in visitors coming to see “Dinosaur,” a 16-foot sculpture of, yes, a pigeon, that had been installed last October. And so Pigeon Fest was born. Organizers called it a one-off event, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it ends up becoming an annual party. After all, a big flock of fans showed up on a rainy day for arts & crafts, games, education, and perhaps most fabulous of all: a Pigeon Impersonation Pageant.
A panoply of pigeonry: A woman with pigeon earrings waited in line to get her face painted. At a nearby table, children crafted pigeon piñatas and drew on pigeon postcards. Representatives from NYC Bird Alliance and the Wild Bird Fund handed out informational fliers. A line formed in front of carnival-inspired games like Pin the Tail on the Pigeon and Ring-A-Wing in which players tried to land a plastic ring on a pigeon silhouette.
The sculpture that started it all: “New Yorkers have opinions about everything, but they seem to really be flocking to this particular sculpture,” Alan van Capelle, Executive Director of the High Line said. “And we thought, why not have a festival celebrating all things pigeon?” Sharing van Capelle’s enthusiasm is Iván Argote, the Colombian artist and film director behind “Dinosaur.” … “I think the sculpture talks a lot to New Yorkers because I think New Yorkers can understand very well this feeling of the funky and the strange,” Argote said.
Showing off their feathers: The pageant included seven impersonators, each judged on their pigeon-ness based on four qualifications: plumage, strut, sound and stage presence. The panel of judges included Argote and a representative of Cornell’s Ornithology Lab. Each pigeon brought their personality to the stage. One contestant donned a top hat for their look and laid an egg on-stage, while another wore a white feathery look with ornate gloves. Songs like Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon” and Nelly Furtado’s “I’m Like a Bird” played in the background while the contestants strutted their stuff. The crowd cheered and applauded as contestants took away pigeon-shaped gold trophies.
‘Turning out for the pigeons’: At the end of the pageant, the High Line staff cleared the stage, prepping for a much different but deeply important event: a panel on building bird-friendly cities. Panelists included Qiana Mickie, executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Urban Agriculture, and Christian Cooper, a science writer and birding advocate. Attending this panel was Margaret Lee, a resident of New York City who has been a long-time pigeon lover. Every day, Lee walks a mile-long loop around her apartment to feed several flocks of pigeons around Downtown Manhattan. For Lee, hearing from experts like Mickie and Cooper is an important part of Pigeon Fest. “I’m hanging out primarily here for the compassionate leaders that I am hoping for,” Lee told Time Out. “It’s amazing to see so many people turning out for the pigeons.”
You guys, they got an Ivy League ornithology expert to judge a contest — of humans dressed as pigeons. Words cannot begin to convey the depths of my love for this. The earnestness, the zeal, the creativity! Not to mention the areas of criteria: plumage, strut, sound and stage presence. This whole festival is such a fun intersection of science, ingenuity, and New York. Come on, High Line, you have to bring this back next year! And keep it in June because I do believe this pageant belongs in Pride Month. In the meantime, we can still enjoy “Dinosaur,” the artwork that started it all. Artist Iván Argote said of his work, “The name ‘Dinosaur’ makes reference to the sculpture’s scale and to the pigeon’s ancestors who millions of years ago dominated the globe, as we humans do today.” Nerd that I am, I chuckled heartily at the name. Though I must admit, it wasn’t until I took a science course in college to fulfill a degree requirement that I first learned birds were the descendants of dinosaurs. It blew. My. MIND!
That Dinosaur is T-Rex size! You have to admire animals that survive and thrive in the middle of millions of humans.
I cannot tell you how happy I am to see that this happened!! Kismet, thank you so much for your excellent coverage and YES, awesome event for Pride month. I love pigeons so much.