LOOKING FOR GREEN, REMAINING HOPEFUL

And so we have a Golden bowerbird alongside an extinct Carolina parakeet, and postcard locations from Sydney, Australia to Milan, Italy.

Gracia Haby & Louise Jennison
Looking for green, remaining hopeful
2024

9 page concertina, artists’ book, Indigo Digital CMYK on 160gsm ecoStar + 100% Recycled Uncoated, with cover, Indigo Digital CMYK on 300gsm ecoStar + 100% Recycled Uncoated
Printed by Bambra
Edition of 75

We search the map for big green shapes to head towards. Sometimes these irregular shapes turn out to be less green upon arrival. Sometimes they are golf courses and cultivated lawns. Sometimes they get smaller, the closer we get.

In finding the reality of the mapped green shape to be ill-fitting, we cut the scenario anew and make a more befitting visual effect upon the green screen.

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This series of ten analogue postcard collages, with a green area like that on a map, mirrors our own longing for green spaces to head towards, and a filmic green screen on which a potential environment more suited for a motley assortment of birds could sprout.

The materials used include old postcards collected specifically for collage, and a palette of birds cut out in readiness many years previous. The challenge we set: to use what we had to make something especially for World Book Night 2024’s theme, In praise of birds.

And so we have a Golden bowerbird alongside an extinct Carolina parakeet, and postcard locations from Sydney, Australia to Milan, Italy, all in celebration of birds. One of the original ten postcards, featuring said Carolina parakeet, was sent to organisers Sarah Bodman, Centre for Print Research (CFPR) and Linda Parr to be exhibited at Bower Ashton Library, UWE Bristol, UK (Friday17th of April – Sunday 30th of June, 2024) and Learning Resources Centre, Hong Kong Design Institute (Sunday 1st of September – Thursday 31st of October, 2024). All ten feature in digital format in our artists’ book to be released at this year’s tenth Melbourne Art Book Fair, NGV International (Thursday 23rd – Sunday 26th of May, 2024).

African pygmy kingfisher, Ispidina picta
Chestnut-crowned warbler, Seicercus castaneiceps
Norfolk kākā, Nestor productus, last recorded sighting: about 1851
Red-breasted pygmy parrot, Micropsitta bruijnii
Sri Lanka bush warbler, Bradypterus palliseri

Common reed bunting, Embeeriza schoeniclus
Crested shrike-tit, Falcunculus frontatus
Eastern black-headed batis, Batis minor
Scaly thrush, Zoothera dauma

Carolina parakeet, Conuropis carolinenis, last recorded sighting: February 1918
Common tern, Sterna hirundo
Fuscous honeyeater, Meliphaga fusca
Golden bowerbird, Prionodura newtoniana
Yellow-footed green pigeon, Treron phoenicoptera

American golden plover, Pluvialis dominica
Kaua’i ‘ō‘ō, Moho braccatus
Strong-billed honeyeater, Melithreptus validirostris
Yellow rosella, Platycerus elegans flaveolus

Little owl, Athene noctua
Northern hawk-owl, Surnia ulula
Savannah sparrow, Ammodramus sandwichensis
Southern boobook owl, Ninox novaeseelandiae

European roller, Coracias garrulus
Golden-crowned kinglet, Regulus satrapa
Newton’s parakeet, Psittacula exsul, last recorded sighting: 14th of August, 1875
Red-cheeked cordon-bleu, Uraeginthus bengalus

Bonon wood-pigeon, Columba versicolor, last recorded sighting: 15th of September, 1889
Golden bowerbird, Prionodura newtoniana
Northern lapwing, Vanellus vanellus
Peach-faced lovebird, Agapornis roseicollis

Common kestral, Falco tinnunculus
Red-necked spurfowl, Francolinus afer
Rusty pitohui, Pitohui ferrugineus
Southern boobook owl, Ninox novaeseelandiae

American bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus
Common grasshopper warbler, Locustella naevia
Great white egret, Andea alba
Mourning warbler, Geothlypis Philadelphia
White-vented euphonia, Euphonia minuta
Yellow-crowned parrot, Amazona ochrocephala

Atlantic canary, Serinus canaria
Black-throated finch, Poephila cincta cincta
Great auk, Pinguinus impennis, last recorded sighting: 3rd of June, 1844
Kea, Nestor notabilis
Scarlet macaw, Ara macao

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RELATED LINKS,
RECALL, WORLD BOOK NIGHT 2023
RECALL

RELATED POST,
GREEN SPACE FINDING

A particularly noticeable feature of the dawn chorus is the behaviour of countersinging. Also known as antiphonal calling, it is the alternating of calls between two or more birds of the same species. Rather than singing over each other, neighbours take turns, and one hears them bouncing phrases back and forth. In this way, the silences they create are as important as their songs, allowing space to listen. As much as singing, birds at dawn are being sung to.

‘Avian Diplomacy — The Dawn Chorus’, from Deep Listening to Nature, Andrew Skeoch, Listening Earth, 2023

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An exhibition hosted by Bower Ashton Library, Bristol, UK
World Book Night United Artists

ABBIE EDBROOKE, AGATA KORNY, AHLRICH VAN OHLEN, ALASTAIR NOBLE, ALI WOOZLEY, ALISA CHINNOCK, ALISON RAYBOULD, AMBER ROLLINSON, ANA PAULA BARROS, ANDREA HILL, ANDREA MOORE, ANDREA ROBINSON, ANDY GILROY, ANDY ROBSON, ANGELA CALLANAN, ANGELA CAPORASO, ANGELA JAMES, ANGELA THAMES, ANGELO RICCIARDI, ANGIE BUTLER, ANNA JUCHNOWICZ, ANNA WALSH, ANNE BOSSENBROEK, ANNE BUCKINGHAM, AOIFE RHATIGAN, BECK RICHINS, BERND W. PLAKE, BRIE BARNACLE, BROOKE KOVEN, CAREN DING, CAREN FLORANCE, CARINNA PARRAMAN, CAROL STARK, CAROLINE CASE, CATHERINE CARTWRIGHT, CATHERINE POLLEY, CATHEY WEBB, CATHRYN MILLER, CECILIA MANDRILE & MARIA DEL, CARMEN MARENGO, CELINE CHUN SZE LING , CHRISTINE DONG, CHRISTINE MARTIN, CHRYSTAL CHERNIWCHAN & CRAIG TATTERSALL, CLAIR SCHWARZ, CLAIRE B. MARCUS, CLAIRE FORWARD, CLAIRE SHIELDS, CLARE REVOLTA, CLARE ROGERS, CORINNE WELCH, DANIEL LEHAN, DAVID DELLAFIORA, DAVID NICOLATO, DIANNE GOACHER, DMITRY SAYENKO, ÉILIS KIRBY, ELAINE KNIGHT, EMILY LUCAS, EMMA BROWN, ERMÍNIA MARASCA SOCCOL, EVA HEJDSTRÖM, FIONA HAMILTON, FRANS BAAKE, GEN HARRISON, GERALD JATZEK, GERTRUDE, GRACIA HABY & LOUISE JENNISON, GRAEME MCNAY, GRUPO GRALHA AZUL LIVROS DE ARTISTA BRAZIL, GWEN SIMPSON, HANNAH GALVIN, HAZEL GRAINGER, HAZEL STRICKLAND, HELEN ROLLINSON, JACK BESSUGES, JANE S. BALCONI, JANE VIGUS, JANET ALLSEBROOK, JENNIFER WALLACE, JEREMY DIXON, JESSICA HO, JIL FAIRCLOUGH, JILL LAURISTON, JILL VIGUS, JO BARNFIELD, JO REED-TURNER, JON DUNNING, JOSEPHINE CORCORAN, JUDY RODRIGUES, JUSSARA LEITE KRONBAUER, KAR MERN TAN, KAREN CHRISTENSEN, KAREN DARLINGTON, KAREN F PIERCE, KATE BERNSTEIN, KATH BELL, KATHY BRUCE, KATRINA WHITEHEAD, KAUSAR NIGITA KAY RODRIQUES, KAYLEIGH DODD, KEI WING PHOEBE HUI, KIM SAUNDERS, KIT HARTLEY, KITTY OAKLEY, LIHIE TALMOR, LINDA FRANCE, LINDA PARR, LING PERRELET, LISA CLARE, LIZZIE BREWER, LORRAINE LAMOTHE, LORRAINE NEESON, LOTTE HUGGEL, LOTTI MÜLLER, LOUISE GRAY, LUCY GUENOT, LUCY WILLDER, LUIZA GUTIERREZ, MAGGIE BROWN, MAN YING LUO, MARA CARUSO, MARAMA WARREN, MARCIA ROSENBERGER, MARIA DO CARMO TONIOLO KUHN, MARIA WHITE, MARIAN KILPATRICK, MARIE-THERESE WISNIOWSKI, MARK VALENTINE, MARLENE MACCALLUM, MARTIN POLLEY, MARY RAREHARE, MAVINA BAKER, MEGAN HARRIS, MEGAN JENKINS, METTE-SOFIE D. AMBECK, MICHAEL HAMPTON, MICHELLE KEEGAN, MICHELLE LYNN DYRNESS, MIGNONNE BUSSER, MIKE CLEMENTS, MIKKO NG, MIREILLE RIBIÈRE, MÓNICA GOLDSTEIN, MORGAN CONNOLLY, NANCY CAMPBELL, NEIL CRAWFORD, NIAMH FAHY, MARIAN KILPATRICK, NORA QUINLAN, ODINE LANG, PAUL HEARN, PAUL SALT, PAULINE LAMONT-FISHER, PETER ANDREWS, PETER HEBDEN, PETER MCCALLION, PRERNA CHANDIRAMANI, QILING XU & DAVID WILKINSON, RACHAEL HOLLEY, RACHEL MARSH – SEMPLE PRESS, RACHEL SINGEL, RACHÈLE RIVIERE, RENATA DANICEK, RICHARD SHIPP, ROBERT CORRIGAN, ROELOF BAKKER, ROSEMARY EVERETT, ROSIE FORD, ROY WILLINGHAM, RUBY SAMS, SAM BRYAN, SAM JEWELL, SAM TREADAWAY, SAMANTHA HARTLEY, SANDRA LOPES, SARA BOWEN, SARA ELGEROT, SARAH BODMAN, SARAH FIGLIO, SHANIA SAMPSON, SHARMILA ARAVIND, SHARON HALL SHIPP, SHAUN OATEN, SHIH CHI LAI, SIGRID EHEMANN, SIRLEI CAETANO, SONIA LEGGETT, STEPHEN FOWLER, SU FAHY, SUCHADAR WHITE, SUE VALLANCE, SUELY CASTRO MELLO, SUMI PERERA, SUSAN BOVINGTON, SUSAN HOLMES, SUSAN SHAW, SUSANNE KLEIN, SYLEE GORE, T. J. ROBINSON, TAMAR MACLELLAN & PHILIPPA WOOD, TANIA LUZZATTO, TERESA OGANDO, THEREZINHA LIMA, TIM SHORE, TIMOTHY WINKLER, TSUI KIN WUN, VALERIE O’REGAN, VERA PRESOTTO, VERONIQUE POZZI PAINÉ, WENDY FALCONER, YASHFA RAZA, ZIE SMITH.
FRIDAY 19TH OF APRIL – TUESDAY 2ND OF JULY, 2024
BOWER ASHTON LIBRARY, UWE BRISTOL, CITY CAMPUS AT BOWER ASHTON, KENNEL LODGE ROAD, BRISTOL, UK

In Praise of Birds

For World Book Night 2024 — In Praise of Birds, WBN United Artists invited participation through reading and responding to a text or book about birds and sending us a postcard about it.

We will publish the collaborative bibliography on World Book Night as well as launching the video with selected images from the project, on Tuesday 23rd April 2024.

We are sharing the postcards in two exhibitions, a physical one here at Bower Ashton Library, UWE Bristol, UK, 19th April – 30th June 2024, and printout posters featuring all the postcards at the Learning Resources Centre, Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI), 1st September – 31st October 2024. Alongside the main exhibition will be a display of postcards made by students at HKDI.

After the exhibition in Bristol, physical postcards will be swapped and sent out to participating artists with an extra gift from WBN2024 of commissioned postcards designed by rubber stamp king Stephen Fowler.

200+ artists responded to our call, with 250+ postcards winging their way to UWE from: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, UK and USA.

Birds represented in the exhibition include: Asian Hornbill, Australian Magpie, Bar-Tailed Godwit, Barn Owl, Bearded Vulture, Bee-Eaters, Bewick’s Swans, Bittern, Blackbird, Blue-Black Grassquit, Bluebirds, Bluetit, Blue Dodo, Brambling, Buzzard, Canada Goose, Cardinalidae, Chaffinch, Chicken, Chiffchaff, Common Chiffchaff, Corbie, Cormorant, Crane, Crow, Cuckoo, Curlew, Dodo, Dove, Duck, Dunnock, Eagle, Eastern Yellow Robin, Egrets, Eider Hen, Elfin-Woods Warbler, Emus, Eurasian Collared Dove, European Robin, European Rollers, Eurasian Wren, Falcon, Flamingos, Friarbirds, Galapagos Finches, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Goose, Goshawk, Great Black-Backed Gull, Great Tit, Grey Warbler, Hawk, Hermit Thrush, Heron, Hoopoes, House Martins, House Sparrow, Hummingbird, Kestrel, Kingfisher, Kookaburra, Lark, Little Bunting, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Mockingbird, Ñandues , Nightingale, Ornithes Areioi, Ortolan, Owls, Palestine Sunbird, Parrot, Peacock, Pelicans, Pewees, Phoenix, Pigeon, Pipits, Raven, Red Kite, Red-Throated Pipits, Robin, Rook, Rooster, Sanderling, Seagull, Snowy Owl, Songbirds, Sparrow Hawk, Starlings, Strigiformes, Stork, Sunbirds, Swallow, Swan, Swifts, Tawny Owl, Thrushes, Toucans, Tree Sparrow, Turtle Doves, Ugly Duckling, Vulture, Wagtails, Warbler, Wheatears, White Ibis, White-Tailed Eagle, Willow Warblers, Wren.