Taxidermy in Sculpture

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Update: The artists name is Pim Palsgraaf!

I have a strange love of taxidermy used in sculpture...I've always felt drawn to it for some reason (though I should say that I am NOT ok with killing animals to make art...many taxidermists now use animals that died of natural causes..."Sustainable taxidermy", if you will...) If you have any interest in the process or the history of taxidermy at all, I suggest you check out:

Still life: Adventures in Taxidermy by Melissa Milgrom

I went to a talk in Brooklyn about the book when it first came out and Emily Mayer, sculptor and taxidermist for Damian Hirst, was there. She had alot of amazing things to say about process, her own work and working for Hirst. There's a good bit about her in the book, as well as the family of taxidermists who worked on the pieces for the American Museum of Natural History, and various others, like Carl Akeley and Walter Potter (neither of which should be left out of a book on taxidermy...)

 Final Voyage - Precious Cargo by Emily Mayer

 Persistence by Beth Beverly of Diamond Tooth Taxidermy

 Peter Gronquist

 Melissa Dixson

 

And of course, Walter Potter...

Go here: The Wagner Free Institute of Science

 

For anyone who likes nature/weird stuff/bones/fossils/stones/shells/taxidermy/etc The Wagner Free Institute of Science is the place for you. What? You've never been? Stop right now and go there. (Do I say this alot? Well its easy because there are so many awesome places in the area for artists!) Anyway, its a Victorian science museum that features an amazing collection of a wide variety of objects. They also have the most amazing lecture hall ever, along with some pretty fabulous lectures in said lecture hall!

One upcoming lecture is Under Glass: A Victorian Obsession and it sounds amazing. Check it out!

 

Check out their website for more details. The museum is free to attend (thought there is an $8 suggested donation and they are certainly worth supporting if you can) and now has a special open studio time for artists to come and sketch. See below for more info:

New Museum Policy - Sketching from the Collection - Artists and Art Teachers:

Artists are always welcome to sketch from the Wagner Institute's collection. Due to an increase in the number of visiting artists, the Institute has reserved Fridays from 1PM - 4 PM, as open studio time for artists. Other visiting student groups will not be scheduled at this time. No reservations are necessary. The use of pens is prohibited, only pencils may be used. Sketchbooks are not to exceed 18x24 inches. For questions or more information, please call 215-763-6529 x17. 

Images from Wagnerfreeinstitute.org