{"id":1307,"date":"2021-04-15T19:32:37","date_gmt":"2021-04-15T23:32:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theadkx.org\/?page_id=1307"},"modified":"2021-10-04T15:36:34","modified_gmt":"2021-10-04T19:36:34","slug":"curiosos-criaturas","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.theadkx.org\/es\/exhibitions\/past\/curious-creatures\/","title":{"rendered":"Criaturas curiosas: Taxidermia en los Adirondacks"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Curious Creatures:<\/p>\n

Taxidermy in the Adirondacks<\/h2>\n

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2021 Temporary Exhibition<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Back for a second year \u2013 the curious world of taxidermy! This exhibition features taxidermy from several private collections and the museum.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>
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Taxidermy animals and accessories have long been used as camp d\u00e9cor in the Adirondacks, imparting an air of rustic authenticity and whimsy. And although a stuffed moose head mounted above a roaring fire often serves as an iconic Adirondack lodge centerpiece, the variety of animals gracing great camp living rooms is far-ranging, incorporating species both local and exotic. In Curious Creatures, <\/em>we bring together antique and modern taxidermy mounts from several private collections as well as the museum\u2019s own holdings to illuminate how the human relationship with animals and nature is explored in this unique art form.<\/p>\n

Beginning in the 19th century, black bear skin rugs, mounted moose heads, antler footstools, and deer hoof gun racks testified to the hunter\u2019s prowess and proclaimed man\u2019s conquest of, and superiority over, wild nature. Mounted creatures were also considered to have educational value, and brought a sense of the outdoors inside.<\/p>\n

In the late 1800s, many camp owners added an exotic note to their d\u00e9cor by displaying animals from all over the world: mounted lions, tigers, elephants, and polar bears; zebra and leopard skin rugs; and furniture upholstered with jaguar and cowhide. Such animal objects added to the air of exoticism created by assemblages of Japanese paper lanterns, Navajo rugs, Balinese statues, Turkish textiles, and other rarities. The overall effect was that of a cabinet of curiosities\u2014a private wunderkammer.<\/p>\n

Even more exotic were the tableaux created by taxidermist Walter Potter (1835-1918), who composed scenes that posed animals as human characters engaging in activities like dancing, playing cards, or going to school. Two of his pieces \u2013\u00a0Rabbits\u2019 Village School<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Monkey Riding the Goat<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 are exhibited here for the first time ever in the United States.<\/p>\n

Today taxidermy is enjoying a resurgence in popularity with collectors; more women are practicing the art; and artists are using taxidermy as their medium.\u00a0Curious Creatures<\/em>\u00a0explores how taxidermy represents our relationships with animals while also focusing on Adirondack taxidermists and their work, collecting and the law, taxidermy and Adirondack style, and new creations by contemporary artists like Barney Bellinger.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>
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