Columba means diver, and livia relates to the color blue, or a blue-ish gray. This of course is from the Linnaean system of nomenclature, both gift and curse.
The phrase “I would build a dovecote” is simultaneously aspirational and elegiac. I sent this one off to Santiago, Chile with the DRAW Project in the Spring of 2025. We’ll see if she comes home. It’s about 5,000 miles/8000 kilometers, which would be an impressive feat of homing.
My dear friend James Meyer asked me in graduate school, “What sort of bird are you?” I said that I am a pigeon, a bird that is native to Europe and Asia but not the Americas, a bird that mates for life and is highly intelligent- passing the mirror test. With hints of iridescence, I try to emulate the subtle beauty of these lovely birds.
Deborah Santoro 