Giant sculpture of a pigeon coming to The High Line in NYC
NEW YORK - A giant, 16-foot tall pigeon is coming to New York City's High Line.
Artist Iván Argote's sculpture, called "Dinosaur," will be installed on the High Line at 10th Avenue and 30th Streets In October. It will be on display for 18 months.
While the pigeon sculpture itself is 16 feet, it will be mounted on a five foot tall plinth, making Dinosaur a total of 21 feet tall.
"Iván Argote's 'Dinosaur' will add great wit to the skyline of New York," said Cecilia Alemani, the Donald R. Mullen, Jr. Director & Chief Curator of High Line Art. "Iván has a charming ability as an artist to take something familiar and make us consider it anew in profound ways."
So why is it called "Dinosaur"?
"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," Argote said. "The name also serves as reference to the dinosaur's extinction. Like them, one day we won't be around any more, but perhaps a remnant of humanity will live on — as pigeons do — in the dark corners and gaps of future worlds. I feel this sculpture could generate an uncanny feeling of attraction, seduction, and fear among the inhabitants of New York."
Dinosaur was originally proposed for the High Line in 2020, and "proved polarizing, receiving a great number of responses, with many New Yorkers remarking on their strong feelings of affection for or disgust of the iconic and ubiquitous urban wildlife," the High Line said in a statement.
It's the fourth commission for the High Line's ongoing Plinth program at 30th Street and 10th Avenue. It follows Simone Leigh's "Brick House" (2019), Sam Durant's "Untitled (drone)" (2021), and Pamela Rosenkranz's "Old Tree" (2023).
