Museum Studies
A selection of essays written while studying at the University of Leicester
When does taxidermy become “art” instead of “natural history”? When does a taxidermy specimen transition from being an “animal” to an “object”? Are these categories mutually exclusive? This thesis explores these questions and seeks to demonstrate that all taxidermy involves artistic illusion, and the differences in how we interpret that illusion are dependent on the context in which it is encountered. Using the idea of an artistic spectrum of taxidermy as a framework, we can explore how different types of taxidermy fall along the spectrum from highly naturalistic to more explicitly artistic. The more naturalistic a work appears, the less visible is the artist who created it. The more visible the artist, the more we are reminded that what we are looking at is merely a construct of nature, a once living creature which is now dead, yet which still possesses power as an authentic or “real” being. After an initial discussion of the concepts of nature, death, and authenticity, this thesis travels along the spectrum of taxidermy: starting with traditional habitat dioramas and vintage dramatic scenes; moving through reconstructions of rare, extinct, and fantastical creatures; and concluding with several examples of contemporary artists working with taxidermy in compelling new ways. Additional insight is provided through individual interviews conducted with museum taxidermists and taxidermy artists, as well as via an online survey assessing people’s attitudes toward taxidermy before and after participating in a visual slide show exposing them to a wide range of taxidermy creations. This project seeks to break down barriers erected by the false dichotomy between art and science, and to expand our understanding of how nature can be represented and reflected in museums through the art of taxidermy. (2020)
Recipient of the Professor Susan Pearce Prize for outstanding research project relating to museum or gallery objects or collections, University of Leicester, 2020
Museums are transportive. Stepping inside a museum allows us to step outside ourselves. We engage with objects, cultures, and perspectives that help us transcend our everyday lives and simultaneously offer opportunities to connect more deeply with aspects of our own identities.
This essay explores what we mean by the term “wellbeing” and how this concept is being utilized in museums today. It presents examples of wellbeing experienced on a personal level, on a group or community level, and ultimately considers the pursuit of wellbeing from a global perspective. (2019)
Image credit: Meet me at MoMA
While the Getty Villa is choosing to focus on a very narrow—and arguably outdated—definition of what art is, and how art museums engage with their visitors, LACMA is preparing to break that mold. Mr. Govan and LACMA will be moving in precisely the opposite direction of Mr. Potts and the Getty Villa. By the time LACMA unveils its new galleries in 2023, the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures and the new Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will be open. Both of these new museums have the potential to redefine “fine art” and the art museum experience, celebrating newer forms of artistic expression, including film, computer animation, illustration, comic books, and other forms of so-called “popular art.” Those who look backwards and align themselves with Victorian practices of collecting and displaying art will look very out of place. Because after all, Los Angeles is a city devoted to the art of reinvention. (2018)
Image credit: The J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa (Wikipedia)