Exhibit of ‘Myth’-ical proportions takes flight at McKee

McKee Botanical Garden opted to host a progressive cocktail reception this year, rather than a dinner, for its Gatekeepers of the Garden, so that guests could wander along the winding paths of the garden to view the newly installed exhibit – A Tropical Flock: Avian Avatars by Donna Dodson and Andy Moerlein, the “Myth Makers” – on display through April 28.

The annual event recognizes top-level donors for their generosity and dedication, while also celebrating the start of another exceptional season.

Elizabeth Kennedy Catering had stations throughout the garden, alongside many of the 10 environmentally friendly bird sculptures. The sculptures are made from bamboo, enhanced with various repurposed mixed media, such as mylar that sparkled in the setting sun.

“They’re all made with bamboo and monumental in scale. A lot of them you can walk through or walk under or walk inside,” said Dodson. “We made them in a warehouse up in Carney, New Jersey.”

“So we build them there and then we bring them here on a flatbed trailer with pickup trucks. We arrived with all of these, 10 pieces on four trailers. Several were bunked together. The birds don’t like that; they throw a fit every time we do it,” said Moerlein with a laugh.

“We brought them here to the garden and then we added to them here,” he added.

“With this one, there was a bit of construction,” said Dodson, referencing “Sanctuary,” a colossal owl by the main pond, which has a bench inside it. “We put a window in the front, so you can look out on the pond.”

They add that the entire tail of “Platinum Peahen,” a majestic 25-foot-tall bird whose tail is just as long, was built on site along McKee’s Royal Palm Grove.

Asked how they got started as “Myth Makers,” Moerlein said they had both been sculptors on their own before they started dating and they applied for residencies where they could make art in public places.

“I was always carving these animal-headed female goddess figures in wood, and Andy was always doing more abstract gestures in the landscape with saplings,” said Dodson. “So it’s kind of a mashup with his saplings and my imagery.”

They switched to bamboo after working with it during a residency in Taiwan.

“We actually prefer it. It’s lighter and stronger,” said Dodson. “We source it from various colleagues from the American Bamboo Society.”

According to a McKee release, the sculptures represent local birds, and each recognizes a notable person with a Florida connection.

Among them, “Clatter,” a trio of wood storks with hand activated bamboo chimes, celebrates the garden’s three founding fathers, Arthur McKee, Waldo Sexton and William Lyman Phillips.

“Lift Off,” an anhinga just taking flight, relates to Bessie Coleman, the first woman of African American and Native American descent to become a pilot.

The “Platinum Peahen,” adorned with spinning pinwheels and mylar feathers, honors May Mann Jennings, an early conservationist considered as the “Mother of Florida Forestry.”

And located near McKee’s iconic bamboo pavilion is “The Steward,” a belted kingfisher that celebrates local oceanographer and environmental scientist Edie Widder, Ph.D., founder and CEO of the Ocean Research and Conservation Association.

For more information, visit McKeeGarden.org.

Photos by Joshua Kodis