Taubenbrunnen

Cologne, Germany 2024
HD-video, loop, colour, no sound, 6:28min

In front of Cologne Cathedral, a little-known work of art is embedded in the pavement. Thousands of tourists walk past the Taubenbrunnen (engl.: pigeon fountain) every day, which was created by German sculptor Ewald Mataré in 1953. A little stream of water constantly runs through the flat spiral, supply the local birds with drinking water.

The silent video work shows this daily process in a loop, watching the playful interactions of the pigeons. Unimpressed by the crowds of tourists around them, the birds tell a story of their small, more-than-human parallel world right in the middle of Cologne’s city center.