THE SUIT

 
 

Before I could begin making the suit, I had to spend a lot of time running "tests" with the gulls using an old sweatshirt in order to determine which technique for attaching the popcorn would be most desirable.  Early on I had tried out a few adhesives, but I didn't want to expose the seagulls to any toxic substances, and the pastes I made from ingredients like water and flour proved ineffective. 

I finally decided upon a sewing style that worked really well.  Although it was rather time consuming, I wouldn't want to do it any other way.  I was worried the seagulls might choke on the string.  But when they pulled off the popcorn, the thread stayed attached to the cloth.  And because I knotted after every few kernels, even if the string broke it would not present a danger to the gulls. 

I spent nearly 100 hours sewing the suit.  Out of concern for Davin's comfort, I left the back of the jacket and pants popcorn-free.


 
 



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Davin insisted upon wearing a protective head 
bag.  He has an irrational fear of  having seagull 
poop in his mouth.

 
 
 

Here is Davin looking rather suave in his popcorn suit. 

Notice the popcorn on his tie is yellow.  It looks nice, but it's actually the result of a flub up.  Without realizing it, I bought two different kinds of popcorn.  Part of his leg is also done in yellow.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 


 
 

A post-burial photo...The birds, though very timid, risked everything for the yellow popcorn.  The tie was picked completely clean and the yellow section on his pants got worked over pretty nicely as well.  It's not visible in this picture, but the popcorn on the sides of the suit's arms and legs was also completely devoured. 


 
 
The Suit
The Event
The Media

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