Thousands of eerie black birds have descended on Mansfield.
Some soared in on feathers. Others are shaped from clay or paint. All are unmistakably crows.
Each year for CrowFest, the Mansfield Art Center showcases more than 100 renderings of the ominous birds by artists across the region.
Jennifer Beavis is the marketing and development director for the center. She joined the Ohio Newsroom to discuss the event’s draw.
This conversation has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
On what’s on display this year
“We have pieces in every possible medium that you can imagine. There's a gorgeous crow that's completely carved out of wood. We have pottery. We have paintings. We have a full documentary dedicated to the crow migration here in Ohio. There's fabric pieces. There's even a gorgeous vest that has all of these beautiful handmade feathers on it. And then, of course, we also have our glass pumpkin patch.”
On the celebration’s inspiration
“It’s really fun being in the middle of the crow migration in Ohio. At the Art Center here, we get thousands of crows that come and roost in the woods directly behind our beautiful building. Stepping outside, sometimes it's just deafening — the cawing, all of the sounds of the wings flapping and the crows roosting in our backwoods.
“Four years ago, we stepped outside and they were being particularly loud. We're a small team here, and we said, ‘You know what? We have a two week window in between our next show. What if we just threw a pop-up dedicated to these crows? It's so fun. People will love to come see the crows. We can play “The Birds” outside in our events pavilion and just make it a good time.’ And the response was amazing. So many people wanted to submit crow artwork. And now in our fourth year, it's really picked up steam.”
On the appeal of crows
“Crows have so many meanings from mythology and history. And we present these awards, too, that are about different things through mythology or puns or anything that celebrates what crows represent. And I think that really appeals to people to just really take a look at what these birds mean and how that relates to our city.”
On the celebration’s personal impact
“At my old house, it actually inspired me to become friends with the crows. I had a small murder – so a murder is a group of crows — that lived in my backyard. I started feeding them, and they brought me little things occasionally, like sticks, that I would see them drop down from the trees. Crows are actually creatures of time, so they have very specific routines. They remember people. They remember your face. They can actually hold a grudge if you do them wrong, and they will pass that grudge down through generations of crows, which I think is so funny. It definitely made me realize just how special and intelligent these birds are and that they're definitely worth celebrating.”
