Positioned Dead

Dror Shoval

In this project, local songbirds are exhibited in their death poses. The woodpecker, the swallow, the nightingale, the blackbird, the warbler, and other birds are all represented here, but you will not see them at their best—in motion, full of color and vitality. This is not the peaceful, carefully crafted and designed taxidermy we are used to, but a series of ceramic castings documenting the birds in their final moments of life. The castings are unpainted and unadorned, free from graceful embellishments or artificial poses. This is how they were found in the streets of Jerusalem—man's nature reserve.
Each bird captures the death pose of the living image.
Is this an act of preservation or commemoration?

The engagement with death pose is not exclusive to natural history museums or hunting lodges. In its broader context, it is associated with the treatment of human corpses in many cultures worldwide. Death poses are integral to many religious practices, ceremonies, and rituals that involve adornment, mummification, glorification, cremation, and, taxidermy.