Something to crow about: Art show celebrates beloved bird

Art show celebrates Canuck the Crow July 17, 2016: The show features 35 artists from across Canada and the United States, all of them inspired by the famous crow.

Art fans flocked to a gallery over the weekend to get their talons on a unique piece of Vancouver pop culture.

The city's most famous bird is the subject of a new exhibit at the ROAM Gallery, where works from 35 North American artists are on display and up for sale.

Canuck the Crow first made headlines after befriending a human, Shawn Bergman. Bergman told local media that the bird has hung around his home, in the Hastings and Cassiar area, ever since it was rescued and rehabilitated by his landlord's son.

"I met him on the day of (his) release, and for some reason he just stuck to me," Bergman said of his unlikely friend.

"It's basically like having a dog with wings."

The bird is also a known "caw"nvict, and was photographed at the scene of a police shooting earlier this year before attempting to remove a weapon from the area.

"He's stolen so many things from so many people. It's just in his personality to do that type of thing," Bergman told CTV News on Sunday.

The winged villain is also known for attacking a cyclist on camera, and other dastardly deeds posted on its own Facebook page and Twitter account.

But now the bird is taking on a new role, as the inspiration for dozens of artists. Although the bird is free, and lives in the wild, it seems to trust Bergman enough to let him approach and take photos.

Some of the photos are featured in the show at the ROAM Gallery. The avian muse also inspired others, who created paintings and illustrations featuring the "dog with wings" and sent them to Bergman. So Canuck's human friend decided to host an art show.

"There's a mixture of water colour base, acrylic, stained glass... Everybody came up with something different which I love," gallery curator Jennifer Angers-Daerendinger said.

Prints of Bergman's photos are sold for between $20 and $100, with half of the profits going to Greyhaven Exotic Bird Sanctuary.

Pieces by other artists range from $50 to $850. The exhibit is on until July 30.