-paradisebirds- Casey Valery 03. Jun 2026

Valery’s work fits within post-internet art practices (e.g., Petra Cortright, Artie Vierkant) where the screen is not a window but a surface of compression, glitch, and user interface. -ParadiseBirds- 03 mimics the look of a corrupted JPEG mixed with a natural history plate, complete with pseudo-Latin names like Syntaxia erroris magnificus .

Future research might explore how -ParadiseBirds- 04 (rumored to incorporate blockchain-based extinction certificates) extends these themes into the realm of NFT-based eco-grief performance.

We began with a string of characters: “-ParadiseBirds- Casey Valery 03.” We end with a question: What did you see? -ParadiseBirds- Casey Valery 03.

The piece uses a StyleGAN3 model trained on 30,000 scanned bird illustrations from the Biodiversity Heritage Library, combined with contemporary anime textures and satellite imagery of deforested regions. Each refresh of the browser generates a new “specimen.” The user can also toggle parameters: “Latent Drift,” “Feather Glitch,” and “Extinction Probability.” As the last parameter increases, the bird’s image fragments into pixel blocks—a commentary on biodiversity loss.

The 03 series by Casey Valery holds significant importance for several reasons: Valery’s work fits within post-internet art practices (e

Paradise Birds, scientifically known as Paradisaeidae, comprise 42 distinct species, each boasting unique characteristics that set them apart from one another. These birds are renowned for their remarkable displays of courtship, where males flaunt their vibrant feathers, perform elaborate dances, and emit a range of sounds to entice potential mates. This phenomenon has captivated human imagination, inspiring artistic expressions, and fueling scientific inquiry into the intricate social dynamics of these avian wonders.

By using a hyphenated lowercase signature (“-ParadiseBirds-”), Casey Valery aligns with net.art traditions, where punctuation and case carry meaning. The hyphens function as wings — enclosing but not confining. We began with a string of characters: “-ParadiseBirds-

This is not pretension — it is the completion of an unfinished artwork through imagination.

Each photograph in the 03 series is a masterpiece, revealing a distinct aspect of the Paradise Birds' biology and ecology. From the regal poses of the Greater Bird-of-Paradise to the agile flight of the King Bird-of-Paradise, Valery's images provide an unprecedented glimpse into the lives of these enigmatic creatures. Her use of lighting, composition, and color palette not only accentuates the birds' natural beauty but also evokes a sense of drama, mystery, and awe.

Casey Valery, a relatively elusive figure in contemporary net art, gained attention with the -ParadiseBirds- series (2022–2025). The third iteration, -ParadiseBirds- 03 (2025), is a browser-based, generative artwork that produces infinite, non-repeating hybrid avian forms. Unlike traditional bird illustrations, Valery’s creations feature impossible plumage, asymmetrical iridescence, and anatomical features that morph between feather, fiber optic cable, and fractal noise. The “03” in the title suggests not only a version number but also a taxonomic cataloging gesture, parodying the Linnaean systems used by 19th-century naturalists like Ernst Mayr or Alfred Russel Wallace.