The Conference of the Birds: Curlew & Great Auk

Over the past three years staff from History & Archaeology & Natural Sciences have been on a journey with artist and animator Sean Harris exploring the future of the Welsh landscape and our relationship with it. This entailed workshops in Loggerheads Country Park, installations in and around the Clwydian Range AONB, and has now culminated with a new exhibition in the Senedd and Pierhead Buildings in Cardiff Bay.

The exhibition combines items from Amgueddfa Cymru with animations and artworks created by Sean. The artworks give voice to two iconic birds: the Curlew – which may be gone from Wales in less than a decade – and the Great Auk – whose tragic demise, raises stark questions of our capacity to learn from past mistakes. Together they speak of the far-reaching consequences of our actions as consumers and an unsustainable relationship with the natural world.

Incorporated within the displays are the Great Auk (and replica egg) which became extinct in the 1840s, and the Thylacine or Marsupial Wolf that became extinct on mainland Australia at least 2,000 years ago. Prior to European settlement, around 5,000 thylacines remained in the wild in Tasmania. It was perceived as a threat to the livestock of farmers and bounty hunting was introduced. It became globally extinct when the last known specimen died in Hobart Zoo in 1936.

Also on display are 11,000 year old perforated and decorated deer and wild cow teeth from Kendrick’s Cave, Great Orme, that once formed a necklace worn at the end of the last Glacial period. These, along with hyaena remains from Coygan Cave, Laugharne, were chosen as a way of connecting us to other species lost from our landscape, and to the ways we as humans have commodified their remains. 

This exhibition brings important messages about habitat and species conservation into the heart of Welsh Parliament and hopefully helps shape a better future for generations to come. For the Amgueddfa Team of Jules, Jen and Elizabeth this has been an exciting journey culminating in seeing these rare and special items from our collections on public display alongside Sean’s amazing art.

Find out more about the exhibition, including Senedd open times here.