If you’ve shopped in our studio before, most likely you’ve heard us use the expression “ethically and sustainably sourced taxidermy” when we discuss our practices. But what do these words exactly mean? As much as I would love to give you a quick bite-sized answer, the reality is these expressions require a much more in depth investigation and are much more complicated than how they might appear at face value. So, in short, this blog, Conversations of Ethics in Taxidermy, we will be continuing this conversation through a few blogs over the next couple of months to better grapple the alternative avenues of thought through its complexities.
To begin the conversation, I reached out to Jazmine Miles-Long, a renowned taxidermist known for her gorgeously tender birds and sleek display, who is based in Hastings, UK. When we broached the subject of ethics, she enlightened me on how these concepts played an enormous role in her practice. “I will only create work that I hope shows respect to the animals and so by calling myself an ‘ethical’ taxidermist, I see this as a holistic approach to my taxidermy practice,” she tells me.
Image courtesy of Jazmine Miles-Long
When Miles-Long began her practice in 2007, she notes that not many people were using these expressions in reference to the origins of their specimens. “To be honest, [back then] all I could find was hunting trophy taxidermy, which was not what I wanted to create, so I decided to use the word ethical to make myself feel more comfortable with the profession I had decided to dive into.” She adds, “I find that sometimes other taxidermists can be offended by the term ‘ethical taxidermy’, because it's almost as though I am claiming I am better than another taxidermist who might have different ethics. This is not what I think, but I simply use the word ‘ethical’ to spark conversation and to give myself a set of boundaries that mean I find it comfortable to do my job.”
“When I first got started in taxidermy (before I decided on the ‘ethical’ label), I was twenty years old and one of my neighbors, who had heard I was doing taxidermy, wanted to help and offered me a pair of mallard ducks. I got really excited but when the ducks arrived, I realized they had been shot. In my naivety, I had no idea that they would have been shot and I cried so much over how it made me feel to see and hold them. The ducks were not shot for me, they were part of a hunting party, but I knew I didn't want anything like this in my freezer again.”
Image courtesy of Jazmine Miles-Long
“For me personally, taxidermy has the potential to encapsulate the utter beauty of life whilst still carrying the weight of that animal’s death,” she tells me. “I only work with animals that have died from what can be considered natural causes, but most of those causes are still a result of human activity- birds that have flown into windows, animals that have been hit by cars, drowned in garden ponds [...] The animals are not killed purposefully, but they have died as a result of our lifestyles as humans.”
The phrase ‘ethical taxidermy’ has taken on a titular role in her practice, and thus has required her to step back and honor both her ethics as a creator and human. In doing so, she is able to define what feels right and know what doesn't. “By calling myself an ethical taxidermist, it gave me the confidence to be clearer in my language when asking for and being offered dead animals and commissions,” she says. “I say no to a lot of commissions because the animal has been shot, but I respectfully pass the work onto other taxidermists that I know will work with these animals and do a good job.”
So, therein lies the dilemma with these terms- subjectiveness. It resoundingly comes down to what the person who says it is ethical means by their definition of ethical. For some taxidermists, collecting roadkill off of the streets is a means to preserve their own ethics; if it is already deceased, then it is not being unnecessarily killed for the sake of the craft. But to other taxidermists, roadkill may not be considered ethical if the animal had a prolonged, miserable death. And to some, ethical taxidermy is simply not possible due to its subjective nature - Mickey Alice Kwapis wrote a wonderful blog on the topic that I highly suggest you read yourself. In short, ethics are all in the eye of the beholder.
Stay tuned for the following essay that will be coming soon to continue this conversation.
For more on Jazmine’s work and wonderful efforts in conservation, read more here or give her a follow on social media here
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Elise Hanson
Oracle Natural Science