Living Collections by Caitlin Heffernan

Along the path that follows one side of the sheltered lagoon, stand a group of five mannequins.  The clearing in which they stand is 12 meters wide at the viewing point on the path.   The hedgerows behind form a curved amphitheatre that frames the mannequins, making them appear like actors on a stage.  

The mannequins are around 1-metre-high, the height of a 7 or 8-year-old child.  Each mannequin has a smooth green painted head, wears a bird mask over their nose and mouth, with a large cloak completely covering their body.  They stand 2-3 meters apart.

Their cloaks are made of triangular padded pockets of waterproof fabric that mimic the feathers of a bird.  The ‘feathers’ of each cloak vary in colour.  Two of the figures are predominantly yellow with tones of green and blue sitting beneath the bright yellow plumage.  Two of the figures are in shades of dark blue and green creating an iridescent quality.  The fifth figure’s feathers are grey and cool blue with bright accents of neon orange and red.  The colours chosen are meaningful for the artist.  The blue and green represent the water and land of the Wetlands.  The Yellow is drawn from the colours of the birds that visit, whilst the unnatural bright neon represents the way in which the birds utilise people-made materials and structures, a process known as imprinting.

The gaze of each figure points in a different direction.  The figure to the far left looks toward the sky, three mannequins look at each other whilst the figure in the background right gazes directly toward the viewer creating an eerie quality to the work.  The overall appearance is of a group of figures that are half human, half bird.  With a smooth green head, a beak mask and the voluminous cloak, only the eyes are visible, reminding us that these are still human mannequins.