To quote one of the greatest scrofters of all time: “To envy the avian is to live under the sky, but to enjoy the avian is to penetrate the unbound horizon.” This line is indubitably that of Miguelito Podolsky, which went viral within the artisan birdcraft communities in 2017 after he was arrested for installing a shrike feeder in front of the Wisconsin Capitol Building in Madison. Following the arrest, there were picketers with barbed pickets laden with animal scraps not unlike the shrike feeder itself. Of course, it was the obvious choice for a city to raise awareness for non-raptor birds of prey - an extremely liberal university sharing the same block as the Capitol of a very conservative state. After thousands of birders worldwide flocked to his support (pun is so disgustingly intended, you may need to regurgitate your last meal to feed your young), Podolsky was released and when asked by reporters the message he wanted to convey: that was the line he spoke.
By this time, Miguelito matched his name, as gravity rivaled his age and was clearly winning. But as a younger man, he was one of the scrofting pioneers. At a time when birdhouses and bird feeders were merely seen as methods to attract and feed birds with a touch of flair, he saw them as a new medium for art. One that would not only stand as a decorative object for birds but rather only become art with the birds. The value, like that of an authentic Samurai sword, is only enhanced by the patina and can be verified through provenance by knowing the environmental conditions both where and when the piece was installed.
“It’s easy to replicate a 17th-century painting,” quotes Dominic Famiano, Provenance Director at the Normal Institute of Abnormal Art in Normal, Illinois. “One only needs to have a sample from another 17th-century piece and scrape off the paint… you can see Matt Bomer do this in that Netflix show White Collar. But to reproduce bird guano from 1956 from an installation that was only up for 300 days in Topeka, Kansas followed by another 100 days in Toledo, Spain… that’s going to be more of a challenge. Who the hell keeps bird shit around for over 60 years. Am I mathing right? That’s over 60 years, right?”
One of Podolsky’s only permanent installations was found in Sue1’s backyard in Carlsbad, California. This piece juxtaposes the bright colors of one of his former homes in the state of Coahuila, Mexico in such a constant drought that eventually led to the demise and abandonment of the entire city with the iconic Fountain of Youth, mythed in St. Augustine, Florida. Podolsky created Spigot of Youth over 60 years ago, and I can assure you, it hasn’t aged a minute!
Another of his installations, Infvierno, gained quick popularity in Anchorage in late January of 1975, as it was installed indoors during the coldest winter the city had ever experienced to provide both an exhibit for the humans and a sanctuary for the avians. The piece itself was designed to look like a burning tower, and it was believed to be the influence for the hit music piece by The Trampps, Disco Inferno, the following year. Each level of the building had different-sized holes for different bird species, insulation between the walls, and the most amazing aspect was the natural gas flames on the sides of the building, which provided heat to the birds, that was adjusted to maintain an internal temperature of about 35 degrees for the birds with their winter plumages. To further the play on words of the title2, Miguelito painted a tiny loggerhead shrike (his favorite bird) with devil horns holding a lighter just below the bottom floor natural gas source.
Why have I never heard of this, most people ask? How haven’t I seen a picture of this, it sounds amazing! Podolsky wanted to ensure that his work was seen in its full form - filled with life. Quite literally. He had a strict policy of no cameras.
But surely, someone had to sneak a picture.
This is true. Many people did. But clever Miguelito was prepared for this. He had installed an X-ray emission lamp, the source for X-rays one would get at a doctor’s office, that he would run just before each group left the observation room, which exposed all film, rendering it useless.
I know what you’re thinking. Radiation, lawsuits, did the people give consent or even know? Here’s your answer: it was 1975. There were still a few shoe stores that were using X-rays to size shoes.
So what happened to the installation, you ask? In his most poetic fashion, Miguelito invited a few close friends and critics and made a short speech, which included another famous line of his: “As the Pine Grosbeak molts his winter grays, showing off his fiery new pink plumage, he burns brightly in the sun. And so too will his old home.”
I’ll admit, it wasn’t his finest quote. His best words came over his decades-long career as a scrofter. But as anticipated, he did indeed turn up the heat on the tower, and they all watched it burn as they held up their Tequila Sunrises to capture the striation of amber to sanguine in the light of the blue to yellow-tipped flames.
Sue is an avid birdhouse collector and has acquired a number of such gems. Her purchase of a house that happened to already have this artwork already installed was one of the reasons she opted for this specific property, not knowing the significance of the exact piece (this is what she claims, at least). Truly a phenomenal story for a later time.
In Spanish, the word invierno is winter, and infierno is hell. Podolsky intentionally spelled the word with both letters, as it doesn’t change the pronunciation.