World Art Utopia

The Birds — Myfanwy MacLeod, Vancouver

A giant sparrow sculpture stands on the plaza of Vancouver's Olympic Village beside tall curved red light masts, with the city skyline behind under a gray sky.
Artwork FileVancouver · Canada

The Birds

RebuiltAug 2018

Myfanwy MacLeod · 2010; rebuilt 2018 · Vancouver

Photo: Guilhem Vellut; CC BY-SA 2.0.

Two giant house sparrows stand in Vancouver's Olympic Village. Myfanwy MacLeod's The Birds was installed in 2010 and returned in a more durable construction in 2018. Source Source Source Checked

💡 4 things to know

  1. Ordinary birds, extraordinary scaleThe city describes a male and female house sparrow at roughly 5.5 metres tall. Source Checked
  2. A reversed relationshipMacLeod's artist statement uses their scale to reconsider people's relationship with an introduced species. Source Checked
  3. Why they leftThe Georgia Straight reports damage associated with climbing, bicycles and skateboards before removal in November 2017. Source Checked
  4. A different structureCarvel Creative says the reconstruction used cast aluminum, stainless-steel supports and protective finishes. Source Checked

📍 Where it is

Milton Wong Plaza, 1650 Manitoba Street, Olympic Village, Vancouver, Canada Source Checked

Open in Maps

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 2010

    Original installation

  2. 201120 Mar

    Guilhem Vellut's Olympic Village photograph · camera date

  3. 2017Nov

    Removed for reconstruction, reported retrospectively

  4. 201814 Aug

    Return to Olympic Village reported

Green stamps are dated photographs; amber stamps are records or reports. Publication and upload dates are not camera dates. A dated sighting does not guarantee the work remains in place today.

✅ The facts

Artist
Myfanwy MacLeod Source Checked
Original installation
2010 Source Checked
Subjects
Male and female house sparrows Source Checked
Approximate height
5.5 metres Source Checked
Reconstruction
Cast aluminum with stainless-steel structure Source Checked
Return reported
14 August 2018 Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Photo: Guilhem Vellut; CC BY-SA 2.0.

Last checked: 23 October 2026 · How we verify art