Each Canary Suicide contains hidden money, a suicide note, and a pet owned by the resident canary, along with unique surprises. Buyers may select and customize a suicide seen here or imagine and request one of their own. Please email to discuss ideas and prices.

The Canary Suicides are meditations on captivity, miniature embodiment, the pet as fetish, and the relationship between death and delight. They are influenced by the medieval reliquary; the work of Rauschenberg, Kienholz, and the mice who’ve made tiny, perfect replicas of some of their most well-known assemblages; and Coan’s mother and grandmother, who bred and kept many healthy, self-actualized canaries trained in calligraphy, origami, algebra, and bridge.

Catherine Coan is an artist, writer, and professor living happily with several well-adjusted pets in Manhattan Beach, California.