bird, box & spindle
Pigeon/Leaving The Nest I: Cowardice, 1994
Drawing/Collage (24"x 24")
© Julie Lapalme
Private collection
bird: flight
The Carier Pigeon refers to a sense of uprootedness and unfettered
travel. The message attached to the pigeon’s leg represents
the ability for adoptees to narrate, in a manner, their own story:
to invent their own flight-pattern. Lack of knowledge about birth
history can be liberating, as there can be less family traditions
to uphold, less expectations to fulfill. Yet even with a relatively
‘clean slate’, doubt and uncertainty about the past
is bound to be a constant travel companion.
I can see patterns of restlessness and wanderlust in continuous
travel, as the wayward and wayfarer search for a ‘lost’
identity. Perhaps people need emotional distance to see things
clear, to digest and reflect away from the muddle, in a private
space which travel can provide.
However, I do not think identity can be lost, as it is not outside
of the self but within. Home is what you make of it and people
other than family can assume these roles. Like the Homing Pigeon,
I always return to what I think of as home.
Family Tree l Pigeon:
Cowardice l Cuckoo: Courage l Mme. Cowbird l L'Escalier Unique
Winding Staircase l House
of my Own l L'Escalier qui monte
