JACKSONVILLE, FLA.- The newest exhibition at the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, Todd McGrain: The Lost Bird Project, opened in the J. Wayne and Delores Barr Weaver Community Sculpture Garden & Plaza on Saturday, November 4, 2017. The exhibition features five large-scale sculptures and has been supplemented by the presentation of preparatory drawings in the Bank of America Concourse inside the Museum.

As a chronicle of humankind’s impact on our changing world — excessive hunting and fishing, commerce, deforestation — and a record of dwindling biodiversity, The Lost Bird Project memorializes North American birds that have been driven to extinction. The Great Auk, Labrador Duck, Passenger Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet, and Heath Hen were birds that once filled unique niches in the North American landscape from the shores of Labrador and New York to the Midwestern plains. Moved by their stories, American artist Todd McGrain (b. 1961) set out to bring their vanished forms back into the world.

“Todd McGrain’s sculptures not only look majestic and beautiful,” states Cummer Museum Associate Curator Nelda Damiano, “they also prompt us to think about the role we play in protecting and preserving the world we live in.”

A bronze sculpture of each of the five birds has been permanently placed at a specific location related to their decline, from Newfoundland to Florida, Ohio to Martha’s Vineyard. The series on exhibit at the Museum is a set that is touring the country, in the hope of spreading awareness and evoking action. McGrain’s modern, elegant style captures the essence of each species, making it universal and approachable. More importantly, these sculptures ask us not to forget, and remind us of our duty to save fragile habitats and prevent further extinction.