Songmachine

A story about the myth of the bird, the human gaze on animals and the bird enthusiast‘s contradictory relationship and affection for his pets.

Since Majapahit, songbirds play a significant role in the daily life of Indonesia. The legend of „Joko Mangu“ is about a prince from the realm of the Sunda, who turns into a turtle dove and flees into the garden of the Majapahit. The Sultan of the Majapahit enjoys the dove‘s song and decides to add it to his pet collection. One morning Joko Mangu disappears and the sultan misses the bird so much, that he leaves home to look for it himself. He finally finds the dove in a village south of Yogyakarta at the home of a man called Ki Ageng Pacer. The two men develop a close bond through their love for the bird. In gratitude for the friendship and for returning the bird, the sultan gives Ki Ageng Pacer two pumpkins filled with gold and jewels.

Since then, only indonesian aristocrats, so called „Ningrat“,and the king‘s circle were authorized to own turtle doves. By now these rules have been loosened and all citizens of Java are allowed to keep this type of dove. Other species have also caught the attention of bird enthusiasts and in the last 60 years an obsession over all imaginable songbirds has emerged.