Miniprojects of isolation: And the Birds Are Not Coming
The process of migration is described with three stages: the first is the pre-migration, when the individual makes a decision to leave behind everything; the second is the migration, which is the physical transition itself; the third is the post-migration, when the individual adapts to the social and cultural framework of the new society.
Sounds simple, but it involves several social and mental factors that influence this process. Several studies proved that there are a higher number of mental diseases among migrants and their first generation descendants. The feeling of isolation, the loss of self-esteem can lead to common mental disorder, suicidal thoughts and deliberate self-harm, eating disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and even schizophrenia.
And the Birds are Not Coming project expresses the feeling of isolation caused by the cultural transition and the missing social network. But it also represents the need to create a connection with the new surrounding. A simple act, feeding birds was brought from the old life and further practicing this habit in the new environment, supposed to help to adapt. The artist hanged out a feeder ball to the tree front of her window and was waiting for the birds. She photographed the feeder every day for one month long till it disappeared. This daily ritual acted as a first connection between the security of the apartment where she lived and the town where she did not feel home.
The repetition of the same image, the empty birdfeeder expresses the frustration caused by the absence of the birds, the missing social connections. The photographs function as documentation but also the process of photographing integrates into the act of creating a connection, used as a tool for it.