Pigeon Fest: Saturday, June 14, 2025
Rain date: Sunday, June 15, 2025, 12–8pm
Various locations on the High Line along 30th Street and the Spur
In celebration of Iván Argote’s Dinosaur—the striking 17-foot-tall aluminum pigeon sculpture at the Spur on the High Line—the High Line presents Pigeon Fest, a full-day festival celebrating pigeons, urban ecology, and public art. Taking place along the half-mile stretch of 30th Street on the High Line, the festival features free public programming, including pigeon-themed carnival games, family-friendly art workshops, a pigeon impersonation pageant, panel discussions around related themes, and a concert presented in collaboration with the Birdsong Project. Learn more & RSVP.
Main stage schedule
12pm: Zumba—Pigeon Dance Party led by Maria Assis Silva
1pm: Mother Pigeon’s Impeckable Puppet Show
2pm: Pigeon Impersonation Pageant, hosted by legendary costume designer and New York City drag icon, Machine Dazzle with a special appearance by Iván Argote
3:30pm: Panel discussion—Building Bird-friendly Cities, featuring Qiana Mickie, Executive Director of the Mayor’s Office of Urban Agriculture; science writer and birding advocate Christian Cooper; horticulture specialist Ethan Dropkin; and moderator Richard Hayden, Senior Director of Horticulture at the High Line
4:15pm: Artist talk with Iván Argote & Cecilia Alemani
5:30-8pm: Musical concert performed by a dynamic lineup of musicians, curated in collaboration with The Birdsong Project
Pigeon Fest will also feature a Discovery Fair, where over a dozen organizations engaged in work around birds, urban wildlife, migration, and monuments, including Cornell Lab of Ornithology, LES Ecology Center, Monument Lab, and Wild Bird Fund, will share information about their important work, host demonstrations, and present hands-on activities. The NYPL Bookmobile will also feature pigeon-themed storytime. Pigeon Fest brings together artists, musicians, scientists, horticulturists, activists, educators, and the public to play and learn together, while exploring the intersection of art, nature, and city life.
Pigeons first arrived in the US via Europe, likely in the 1800s. They were kept as domesticated animals and were once indispensable as military messengers in both World War I and World War II, saving hundreds of soldiers’ lives. Many of these pigeons received gallantry awards and were celebrated as war heroes, before technology eventually rendered them obsolete. Today, pigeons are our largely derided and despised neighbors. By spotlighting this misunderstood bird, the High Line and Iván Argote seek to reconsider who deserves to be honored and memorialized, while opening broader conversations around our urban ecosystem and how we can better share our city with nature and wildlife.
Join us for a day of learning, connection, and rethinking what it means to live alongside art and nature in the city.
Support: Pigeon Fest is made possible, in part, with endowment funds from the Diamonstein-Spielvogel Foundation.