Rogue Taxidermy

Rogue taxidermy is the practice of creating fake "mythical" or hybrid animals by sewing and stuffing together the remains of two separate animals. These were (and still are) often exihibited at freak shows and other sideshows. Historically these were sometimes put together to dupe gullible members of the public, especially in times where education was vague and few people travelled. Today, rogue taxidermy is an art form, a sort of macabre kitsch.

A "stuffed" griffin from the Copenhagen Zoological Museum (via Wikipedia)

Famous examples include the Fiji mermaid, a grotesque combination of a monkey and a fish;
The skavader, a fictional Swedish creature, and the jackalope, a creature from North American folklore. Such hoaxes were very common, especially in the case of medieval monsters and mythical beasts, so much so that when the Australian platypus was first discovered, people assumed it was a stuffed fake.

Image of the Fiji Mermaid from Wikipedia, see link above

The term "rogue taxidermy" was invented by the Minnesota Association of Rogue Taxidermists, a group who specialise in artificial oddities. When they first exhibited, the New York Times ran a feature on their work, including Sarina Brewer's brilliant roadkill creation, the "Goth Griffin" (below)

Here's a selection from their 2010 exhibition, with more images from the show here.

A similar idea can be seen in the delicate and strangely appealing bone and metal creations of Jessica Joslin

From Joslin's 2010 collection, Brass and Bone

There has been a lot of controversy about these pieces, however. Some taxidermists and audiences accuse the artist of not respecting the animals that are being used to create the pieces. However, since many artists, such as Sarina Brewer and Scott Bibus only use "found" animals (usually roadkill), I personally beleive there is greater respect for the animal than in conventional taxidermy, which often uses hunting trophies. Beyond that, I see a similarity with practices of indigenous peoples in North and South America and in ancient Egypt; using the remains of an animal to create pieces that are both beautiful and have deep spiritual or symbolic meaning. I strongly beleive that using otherwise "leftover" parts of animals shows is a fitting tribute to that creature.

I really enjoy this sort of work. Taxidermy has become a fairly common sight in fine art installations thanks to the work of artists like Damien Hirst and Polly Morgan, but I particularly respect the skill required to create a convincing rogue piece, as well as the dark humour of many such pieces. I'm considering adding an aspect of rogue taxidermy to my Egyptianising theme. Taxidermy and mummification, although practiced for different purposes, are fairly similar. Rogue taxidermy reminds me of the Egyptian mummies of animals such as hawks, rams and cats, which were often arranged to resemble the basic mummiform shape of a mummified person. Both practices are about preserving the dead and giving the corpse the sembulance of life.

I also like the idea of using rogue taxidermy to create mythical creatures, though the beasts typically created have Christian and Graeco-Roman subjects; it would be interesting to create a piece that references Egyptian daemons and deities, such as Ammut, but has the feel of rogue taxidermy.

More rogue taxidermy pieces
A blog featuring rogue taxidermy
An artist who creates terrifying mixed media "mermaids" using parts of fish
Another piece about the Minnesota Association of Rogue Taxidermists, with videos, slideshows and more
And another

And a video featuring two of New York's leading taxidermists talking