Thomas Deininger is a multimedia artist and naturalist who lives and works in Tiverton, RI. A celebrated contemporary artist, Deininger, and his studio assistant and collaborator Rus Owen, spend their days creating sculptures that play with perspective, perception, and memory, composed entirely from discarded plastic items; bits of waste washed up on local shorelines and an abundance of abandoned nostalgic remains.
Through his sculptures, Deininger elevates and celebrates species in our local ecosystem, particularly birds. When these immortalized likenesses are viewed head-on, viewers perceive dazzling hummingbirds, woodpeckers, hawks, cardinals, and other species. As the sculptures rotate, they reveal unexpected components; plastic waste that extends in every direction. The sculptures contain familiar childhood toys, including superheroes, Disney figures, small skateboards and airplanes, and detritus collected from beaches and other natural places. These elements are arranged in seemingly impossible tableaus, leaving viewers to confront a darker side of nostalgia. Deininger’s creations are delicate, disruptive, and provocative; works of a true genius.
Deininger hopes his work will remind viewers to connect, or reconnect, with the wonder of the natural world. As Deininger says in his "ART inc." story "Waste to Wonder", “They may have forgotten about cardinals, but I can remind them."
In asking Deininger his greatest artistic influences, rather than citing other artists, he reflexively cites his greatest muse: birds. Through this response, Deininger reveals a softer side, one of quiet curiosity and transcendental wonder.
In this spirit, we asked Deininger to share a few of his favorite avian species, and why he finds them fascinating.
Here’s his list, “Birds of Intrigue.”
All birds are wonderful masterpieces of the evolutionary process.
I’m drawn to Osprey because their population rebound is a success story, and that gives me optimism. They have evolved to almost exclusively catch and eat fish which has resulted in very specialized design…just awe-inspiring in their violent effectiveness. They are also migratory so when they show up in early spring to build or repair their nests and mate it’s an early sign of summer. Because I suffer a bit from seasonal depression, it portends warmer, longer more verdant days are to follow.
I enjoy watching crows because of how intelligent and social they are. They’re almost always in communication with one another. I often see them in groups of three. I imagine there’s a hidden geometry to the physical distance and spatial relationships they maintain. I also find the all-over black just beautiful, especially against the snow. Sometimes you can only distinguish the different parts (beak, eye) because of the texture variation. Occasionally when flying overhead they look like bird-shaped holes in the darkness of space. When they communicate with their various caws and cackles, I’m just so curious about what they are saying to each other.
Cardinals are a lovely touch of bright color that’s rare in the natural world. The contrast between the green of the summer and the muted colors of the winter does something to inspire me. I also appreciate how much more vibrant the males are than the females. This feature is so the males are able to divert predators' attention away from the nesting mothers. I find that a nice kind of chivalry built into the species.
Then there is the blue of the robin’s egg. Why that color? I don’t even care why. It’s just beautiful to me.
