Description
Todd McGrain
American, b. 1961
Great Auk, 2010
Bronze
National Museum of Wildlife Art Collection
The Great Auk was driven to extinction in 1888. The last known bird of the species died in Fogo Island, Newfoundland.
ARTIST VOICE
These bronze sculptures are subtle, beautiful, and hopeful reminders. The human scale of each sculpture elicits a physical sympathy. The smooth surface, like a stone polished from touch, conjures the effect of memory and time. I model these gestural forms to contain a taut equilibrium, a balanced pressure from outside and from inside—like a breath held in. As a group they are melancholy, yet affirming. They compel us to recognize the finality of our loss, they ask us not to forget them, and they remind us of our duty to prevent further extinction. - Todd McGrain