PHOTOS: David Ross | PRODUCTION: Klara van Wyngaarden | WORDS: Jacquie Myburgh Chemaly
Dead animals may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but there’s something about antique taxidermy that we’re finding quite compelling at the moment.
It all started earlier in 2010 with Johannesburg interior designer Tessa Proudfoot’s extraordinary exhibition of all manner of curiosities – from an old travelling trunk to stuffed flamingos and a lion skin. Whether you display them collectively or prefer single accents, we predict everyone’s going to be scouring antique shops and junkyards for those trinkets that look like great-granddad’s archeological treasure trove. It’s a look that also works in a contemporary context.
According to Tessa, antique taxidermy is “all the rage” in Europe. The display of current taxidermy is controversial, but Victorian and early 20th century works comes from a very different time. Animals were hunted discriminately then, and poaching was uncommon. Beautiful pieces could be found adorning the living rooms of travellers who embarked on grand tours of Africa and other parts of the world around the turn of the 19th century.
If you need any more inspiration, we strongly suggest you look out for Animal Logic, photographer Richard Barnes’s new book of extraordinary images of natural history.
• Tessa Proudfoot & Associates: 011 788 7374, www.tessaproudfoot.co.za
