Modern Birds

An open air exhibition in the Museumkwartier

The eagle stands for strength, the owl for wisdom and swallows are said to bring good fortune. Time and again, humans have endowed birds with their own qualities and elevated them to symbols. They are among the oldest species and have accompanied us since the dawn of time, when we dwelled in caves.

Even in modern cities they are ever present: from the soft cooing of doves to the cawing of crows and the cheerful chirping of sparrows or the ear-splitting shrieks of ring-necked parakeets. And on The Hague’s coat of arms it is the stork that takes centre stage.

Birds are at once fixtures and elusive entities. Even when confined to a cage or captured by a wildlife photographer or birdwatcher, their inner world remains beyond our ken. They are a mystery. At any moment they may unfurl their wings and vanish, beating the air – a freedom we as gravity-bound creatures, can only dream of. It is for all these reasons that birds have inspired artists for centuries. At the Mauritshuis, guest curator Simon Schama has traced a historical arc of ‘bird art’ starting from Carel Fabritius’ The Goldfinch (1654).

This exhibition, Modern Birds, showcases the enduring fascination for these creatures contemporary artists express. For birds continue to stir the imagination: their plumage displays, their calls that usher in spring, their urge to build and brood, and their power to take flight and, from high above, cast an impassive gaze on life below.

Participating artists

• Studio Ossidiana - Giovanni Bellotti en Alessandra Covina (IT)
• Rosemin Hendriks (NL)
• Luke Stephenson (GB)
• Hans van Asch (NL)
• Herman Lamers (NL)
• Haevan Lee (KR)

Modern Birds is an outdoor exhibition of city program BinnenhofBuiten. BinnenhofBuiten organizes events and activities during the renovation of the Binnenhof. It is a project by The Hague & Partners for the Municipality of The Hague. BinnenhofBuiten is curated by Mary Hessing.