farewell ravishing beasts

A really cool exhibit that recently ended at the MOV was Ravishing Beasts. I really wanted to get in there and spend time exploring before it left, and also to enjoy a relaxed visit to the Art of Craft exhibit as well. With only a shift or two a month, I haven't been at the museum often enough to really take in all there was to see. So I called up my aunty and asked her to join me for a day trip.

The alluring world of taxidermy was covered brilliantly (imho) by guest curator Rachel Poliquin. A few of my best pics to give you a wee lit bit of what it had to offer: this example of really good taxidermy...and one that has gone horribly wrong. can you guess which is which? heh; a step-by-step guide on how taxidermy is done; the duck-billed platypus was originally believed to be a hoax since it kinda looks like someone just randomly pieced together some parts; many of the trophy heads were loaned to the museum for the exhibit; taxidermy as a contemporary art form. For lots of great perspective, crazy photos and thought provoking taxidermy sources, visit Rachel's blog at www.ravishingbeasts.com I find some of the stuff she posts to be truly fascinating!



celebrity pic: me & the lion from 'Night at the Museum' I think he still needs a good home if any of you are interested, hehe.

It was a great exhibit to tackle the whole debate on what taxidermy should be used for and why. Over the years it has served many different purposes. When colonization was rampant and explorers were collecting samples of different species in lands far, far away, taxidermy was used as a means to intrigue and educate people with diverse collections. Parlours were not considered fashionable at one point if you didn't have a stuffed bird, animal or something laying around. Hunters have forever used their catch as trophies mounted on their walls, and then there are folks who like to create dioramas with things like gophers and squirrels. A long and interesting history taxidermy has!

From the very first donation ever made to the museum, which was a trumpeter swan in 1894, the number of animals had grown in the natural history collection in the archives...and this exhibit was the first time many of them had been seen by anyone other than curatorial staff for about 50 years. Why not bring them out and provoke some dialogue on what to do with them next?

Now, if you have time before April 11th, and you admire beautiful things made by gifted people, do yourself a favour and visit the Art of Craft exhibit! My pics here, a sampling of the best I took throughout, in no way capture all the impressive things to see. That said, I hope they will tempt you...

This canoe is called "Canadian Offering" by Brian McArthur, an artist from Alberta. My absolute fave! Love it, love it, love it ~ i find it's just sooo Canadian :)

But I also loved many other things on display from 3 artist collectives (Korea, Canada, and BC/Yukon) being showcased as part of the Cultural Olympiad in Vancouver.
~ I would like to add the artist information for each piece here, and will do so after I write them all down next time I'm at work.










On a sunny spring day...this is a gorgeous place to be!