Pigeon statues in Wellington

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There are several bronze pigeon sculptures distributed around Wellington, New Zealand. They were designed by artist Jonathan Campbell and are placed around local businesses, each posed interacting with an object relating to the business. Ten of these sculptures were designed, and as of April 2024 two are missing.

History

After being designed by artist Jonathan Campbell, ten bronze pigeon statues were dotted around Wellington, a city inhabited by pigeons, in 2022. They were placed around local businesses, each with a different design that interacts with an object that is in some way related to the business and how it was created. [1] [2] [3] For example, there is a pigeon eating out of a peanut butter jar in a park, which is where the idea of peanut butter company Fix & Fogg was first thought of. [1] [4] The pigeon statues were part of WellingtonNZ's "Only in Wellington" campaign. [1] [4] [2] Rather than being permanent, the sculptures were designed to only last a few years. [5]

In 2023, one of the pigeons, named Patty, went missing. [6] [3] The pigeon was designed for Wellington On a Plate, and is posed standing on a burger sculpture, which was placed on a wooden table. The table was stolen too. [3] WellingtonNZ offered a $100 Burger Wellington voucher in return for the statue. [6] [3] It was found a few weeks later, and needed repairs as it was dumped in a bush. [7]

Two pigeon statues went missing in 2024. One, named Pepperoni, has a slice of pizza in its beak and went missing in 2024. [5] [7] It had been installed on Cuba Street. The pizza slice was not stolen. To mourn for the missing pigeon, members of the public created a memorial shrine by placing flowers and candles where it was located. [7] [5] The pigeon located outside the Embassy Theatre, named Precious, also went missing. Campbell said that when he placed the sculptures around Wellington, he expected them to be gone by the next week. [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Chumko, André (16 September 2022). "Polarising pigeons cast out in central Wellington". Stuff . Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  2. 1 2 Webb-Liddall, Alice (1 September 2022). "How the magic of Wellington helps entrepreneurship thrive". The Spinoff . Archived from the original on 10 July 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Wong, Justin (24 February 2023). "Feathers ruffled after Wellington bronze pigeon statue goes missing". Dominion Post . Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024– via Stuff.
  4. 1 2 Campbell, Georgina (5 August 2022). "First a sign with a spelling mistake, now bronze pigeons to promote Wellington". The New Zealand Herald . Archived from the original on 10 July 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 "The curious case of the Wellington pigeon pincher". RNZ . 27 April 2024. Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  6. 1 2 "One of Wellington's iconic bronze pigeon sculptures stolen, WellingtonNZ desperate for Patty the pigeon's return". Newshub . 23 February 2023. Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Waiwiri-Smith, Lyric (25 April 2024). "Pigeon pincher strikes with iconic Wellington statue stolen". Stuff . Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
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