Mother Pigeon: Art, Style, and Her Cathedral of Birds
May 12th, 2025
1. Yellow Gown - Mother Pigeon holds her beloved animal as they flock to her in her handmade yellow gown, featuring her paintings sewn at the bottom.
In a city where most people step around pigeons without a second thought, 61- year-old Mother Pigeon, aka Brooklyn artist Tina Trachtenburg, stops to feed them every morning at 6 a.m. She calls them her “babies,” and for her, this daily ritual is an act of love, care, and quiet resistance.
What makes her art feel so alive is that it’s not just something she does, it’s how she lives. Tina makes all of her own clothes, often sewing by hand. Her outfits, like her art, are complex, layered, and expressive. Her home is just as full of feeling, filled with puppets, paintings, fan art, and hand-sewn creatures, all inspired by pigeons. Her deep connection to her Mexican heritage and religion, especially the Virgin of Guadalupe, adds warmth and color to everything she creates. Her life is an extension of her work, and her work is an extension of her care. Her art is also deeply feminist in the quiet power of nurturing, noticing, and protecting what others overlook.
Her soft sculpture installations of pigeons, rats, raccoons, and other often overlooked animals are usually laid out on the streets where people can’t miss them. At first glance, they might look playful or cute, but there’s something deeper going on: her work asks us to reconsider who we value, and why.
Team Credits:
Creative concept and photography: Madison Paloski @madisonpaloski
Styling by Kinga Irzyk @kersplatski
Assists by Madeline Mason @madelinemasonnn and Ashley Sevcik @ashleyisntreal
Talent: Mother Pigeon (Tina Trachtenburg) @motherpigeonbrooklyn
35mm and 120 film processed and scanned @westlabnyc
2. Inside Mother Pigeon's Workshop- Tina surrounds herself with her art in every aspect of her life. She has an entire room in her apartment that she shares with her husband dedicated to her pigeon fan art, puppet designs, and soft sculptures.
3. Cathedral of Birds- The pigeons flocking and leaving, almost on command by Mother Pigeon herself.
4- Tina at Her Sewing Machine- Her bedroom sewing machine is where she spends most of her days, whether it is sewing her own designs or her pigeon soft sculptures, surrounded by her religious memorabilia and greenery.
5. Birds Flocking to Tina's Yellow Gown- After the feeding, Tina takes time to sit on the benches and connect with the birds. She says, "I start my days with gratitude. I love being outside with my pigeon babies!"
6- Tina in her Gray Pigeon Coat- Tina wishes to embody a pigeon as she feeds them in the morning. She dawns a gray coat with leather feathers she handmade.
7. Tina's Bedroom- Tina's bedroom is a sacred space for her to practice her religion in. She centers herself around multiple portraits of the Virgin of Guadalupe, one of her muses. Her every day floral crowns and headpieces are to emulate the Virgin's portraits. The above was painted by her father and she gets to look up at it and think of him, every day.
8. Tina Feeding Her Flock- Every morning at 6am up to 300 pigeons meet Mother Pigeon in the center of Maria Hernandez Park for their feeding.
9. Tina's Hands with the Virgin of Guadalupe- Inspired greatly by her Mexican heritage and religious background, the Virgin of Guadalupe stays a constant inspiration for Tina. She says, "It is important for me to have her on a blanket because she wraps me with all of her love and security."
10. Tina with Her Handmade Raccoon Purse- Tina's full, every day get up. No outfit is complete without her hoop skirt, a handmade headpiece, and one of her soft sculptures.
11. Tina Sewing Her Stuffed Pigeons- Hand sewing at her kitchen table, Tina starts to work on her pigeon soft sculptures. Her kitchen table faces a window with a fire escape that pigeons flock to and watch her, knowing who she is and what they do for her.
12. Birds in Motion - The morning feeding takes place and the flock starts to fly away. Tina has been training them to leave the park immediately after feeding due to the high level of netting and killing that has been taking place of the wildlife in NYC parks.
13. Tina's Hands as She Works- Hands tell the story of the individual and Tina's are no exception. In her 61 years of age, she has collected numerous handmade and vintage rings that connect with her and her culture. Tina's hand painted pin cushion box tells its own story. She says, "I tell kids, and even some adults, that pigeons don't like to be chased! 'Would you like to feed them instead?' And it always works! I hand them some seed and the children and birds love it!"
14. “The Fly Priestess of Pigeon Religion" - A nickname donned on her, the "The Fly Priestess of Pigeon Religion" states, "In the name of the Fauna the Sun and the Holy innocence of Nature, all animals are Saints!"
15. Tina and Her Look-a-like Puppet- Tina also dabbles in puppetry and puts on puppet shows at local libraries and child schools. "Mother Pigeon" is her self portrait doll featuring Tina's real hair and clothes.