poo printer generates typography with bird waste

fabrizio lamoncha’s poo printer generates typography with bird waste
image courtesy of fabrizio lamoncha

spanish artist fabrizio lamoncha‘s poo printer is an analog typography printer, which uses bird excrement as a medium in the creation of graphic interpretations of the latin alphabet. the wooden device is made up of a removable, modular tray at its center, which is made up of interchangeable parts. the various pieces integrate food dispensers into their design, and can be worked into formations of shapes and letters. a group of male zebra finches are set on the posts and left to meander, eat, and produce waste over the course of a few days and — as they excrete — they deposit their waste in the arrangement of the tray. placed directly under the cage is an extended roll of paper, which acts as the canvas for the poo.

below is a time lapse video documentation on the production of the first letter ‘A’.

 
(left) four birds are perched atop the arrangement of the interchangeable tray parts
(right) the canvas roll reveals the birds’ excrement as the letter ‘A’
images via

two of the male zebra finches who underwent the experiment
image courtesy of fabrizio lamoncha