The Conditions for Memory
Labrador Duck: 1875
Heath Hen: 1932
Sea Mink: 1890
Passenger Pigeon: 1914
1989
cast stone
Originally installed in New York’s Central Park, Conditions for Memory is a four-part sculpture recalling the extinction of animal species native to the East Coast. The Sea Mink, Heath Hen, Passenger Pigeon, and Labrador Duck are represented by negative casts of those animals’ bodies configured as non-functional molds, unable to replicate the specimens. Each element is inscribed with the year of the given species’ extinction.