When Flaco the Eurasian owl escaped his vandalized Central Park Zoo enclosure in 2023, he became a citywide celebrity and a vision of hope for many New Yorkers. Two years after his escape, and one year after his death, Flaco is now memorialized in a new exhibit at the New York Historical.
February is not just the anniversary of Flaco’s escape and the anniversary of his death. Now it also marks the opening of “The Year of Flaco” exhibit, encompassing about 100 objects and 30 images.
The exhibit chronicles Flaco’s year-long tirade throughout Manhattan, documenting his development from a bird born in captivity who continuously evaded capture to an adept hunter in the wild, catching pigeons and rats.
It concludes with several artifacts from the community-made memorial underneath his favorite oak tree in Central Park’s North Woods.
Flaco’s release and subsequent appearance on the sidewalk outside of the 5th Avenue Bergdorf Goodman quickly placed him in the spotlight. For the next year, metropolitan residents listened closely for hooting and looked out their windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of an elusive visitor on their fire escape.
Rebecca Klassen, exhibit curator, was one of those eager observers, telling ABC7, “It’s kind of like when a butterfly lands on your arm or something, and you tend to think, wow, I’ve been blessed by the divine.”
So far, the exhibit has already drawn out-of-state visitors. Christian Madera, a New Jersey resident, told Gothamist, “He definitely captivated people’s imagination with this idea of him being almost like an immigrant and a true New Yorker.”
Along with an excited fanbase, many were also concerned for the well-being of a non-native bird of prey, with no hunting experience, having to learn to survive in such an urban city. Despite the odds, Flaco managed to learn how to hunt, and many rejoiced online to pictures of him feeding on Central Park rats.
However, after a whirlwind year, Flaco was reported to have died after crashing into a Manhattan building. A necropsy later revealed he had consumed a lethal amount of rodenticide.
With the anniversary of his passing last Sunday, the exhibit was bittersweet for some. “It’s really sad because he’s gone, but there’s hope somehow in it too that an animal like that could survive as long as he did in New York City,” exhibit visitor Catherine Gleason shared with Gothamist,
Flaco’s impact went beyond that of becoming NYC’s emotional support animal. News of his postmortem results inspired the naming of NYC’s new rodent contraception program, “Flaco’s Law”. This law is in addition to the renamed Bird Safe Buildings Act, now the FLACO Act (Feathered Lives Also Count).
The multimedia exhibit will run until July 6. Entry to The New York Historical is $6 for students and is pay-as-you-wish every Friday from 5–8 p.m.
There are also a variety of Flaco-centered souvenirs available for purchase, including mugs, posters, plush owls and T-shirts rallying “Flaco for President.”
