Artist Petah Coyne: Peacocks as Symbol of Renewal

Sculptor Petah Coyne's Untitled #1336 (Scalapino Nu Shu) is a massive installation, featuring a 14-foot-high apple tree covered in black sand, and taxidermied pheasants and peacocks. The subtitle of the work refers to Coyne's friendship with the late poet Leslie Scalapino, and n? shu - a centuries old Chinese writing technique used by women, stories told in secret writing.

By Laura Spencer

Kansas City, Mo – For a series called "Artists in their Own Words," KCUR's Laura Spencer listened in to a docent training at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art.

Petah Coyne's installation, Untitled #1336 (Scalapino Nu Shu) is one of several new acquisitions at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, and the centerpiece of an exhibition called The Big Reveal, which runs through April 15, 2012.

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