Throughout late 1990s, Mark Dion had been making some of the most innovative work to have ever been made. Born in Massachusetts, USA, Dion has exhibited throughout Europe and America. This exhibition is the first opportunity in Britain to see a range of his work. Dion’s work is concerned with the representation of nature, particularly the extinction of endangered species. In a series of tableaux, using objects, sound, text and photography, Dion adopts the role of an ‘amateur naturalist’. Employing investigative methods more commonly associated with scientific enquiry, Dion examines the production of theories and information, re-contextualising science so that art and the art gallery become the territory of environmental issues. Dion is working with the Natural History Department of The Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery to create a display from the department’s collection of rare and extinct birds. 

This exhibition also includes a screening of ‘Artful History: A Restoration Comedy’, a film Mark Dion made in 1989 with Jason Simon.