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Lisa Black, 32, Brisbane, Australia
It's a reflection of our undeniable technological progression. Seeing animals with carefully integrated mechanical additions encourages us to reassess how we define "natural." By creating beauty within this supposed paradox, I aim to challenge the concept of a world separated into the "sacrosanct" natural and "vulgar" industrial.What's the coolest thing you've made?
I created a mechanical crocodile some years back and incorporated an antique clock movement inside the body. You could wind the movement up and watch the gears turn, giving it a lifelike quality. It also apparently reminded a lot of people of the crocodile in Peter Pan.
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I've had my fair share of negative and sexist comments and emails over the years, although it was definitely more at the start of my career. Really early on, I remember someone sent me a photo of my face photoshopped onto this weird baby mechanical body, using the mechanical parts of my sculptures. Although it was intended to be aggressive, it was so badly photoshopped and ridiculous that it made me laugh.


Sarina Brewer, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Sarina Brewer: When creating my taxidermy sculptures, folklore, mythology, and anomalies of nature are all an influence. Cryptozoology and even urban myths creep into these works. Since my animal materials are recycled, they generally have some sort of imperfection. Often the skins can't be used in one piece because a section is damaged, so I end up with a variety of mismatched leftover bits. This forces me to come up with all sorts of unlikely animal combinations drawn from my own imagination—these are among my favorite works. My materials include discarded livestock remnants, pet trade casualties, naturally deceased animals, donated nuisance animals, and legally collected roadkill.What's the coolest thing you've ever made?
That would be Mother's Little Helper Monkey [below]: A tongue-in-cheek, autobiographical piece that consists of a winged monkey wearing a fez and guarding a martini. The title is a play on words, a combination of The Rolling Stones’ song "Mother's Little Helper" (about mama needing a little something to relax) and service animals called "helper monkeys," which are trained to be live-in care providers for quadriplegic people. People always ask me if it has anything to do with The Wizard of Oz… No, I just really like monkeys, and I really like vodka.
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It's true that men working in this realm don’t experience a reaction to their work in the same manner a woman does. Woman are expected to nurture. A woman doing something "disrespectful" to the dead body of some poor, innocent animal flies in the face of social expectations and people (usually other women) blow a gasket. I have received enough hate mail over the years that at one point I joked I would turn them into a book… My all-time favorite was "I'm gonna hang you from a meat hook you shit-bitch." Someone else threatened to run over me and my entire family with her Harley.But in all seriousness, pioneers like myself who have been at this for many years have taken the brunt of this type of abuse and paved the way for the younger women who are only recently entering the field. It's not anywhere as bad as it used to be, and it's on a noticeable decrease… I think I might be going for a world record right now; I haven’t had any hate mail in almost a year.

Katie Innamorato, 24, New Jersey
Katie Innamorato: My work focuses a lot on the cyclical connection between life and death, and growth and decomposition. I have been fascinated by decomposition for a while now. I also look at the idea of remembrance and different ways of creating homage to fallen animals. Right now my work is becoming more story- or fairy tale–like, more narrative than my past works.What's the coolest thing you've made, or your favorite work?
My favorite piece is my most well known one, my Moss Fox. I have a lot of visions of pieces in my head, and that one seems to have set my mind in motion. I visualized a dead fox seemingly growing mosses and lichen from the inside-out. Everyone says the eyes in that piece really speaks to them and stays in their minds.
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I have only had one case of harassment and it was actually when I was working on my thesis in college. Some jackass school cop had a stick up his ass about me doing this kind of work at school and actually cornered me in my studio one day, talking down to me about how he did not think I should be doing any of that. He then called in the [Department of Environmental Conservation] and Health and Safety, who all cleared what I was doing as legal and safe… I reported him for harassment, and so did a few other students who overheard the whole thing. Besides that one idiot, I have been lucky.


Kate Clark, Brooklyn, New York
Kate Clark: I make conceptual sculptures, fusing the human face and animal body in a lifelike way. My work uses taxidermy as a stepping-stone to start a conversation, but instead of presenting the "hierarchy" of man over animal, as traditional taxidermy does, the viewer sees a balance between man and animal, causing a primal reaction, and forcing the viewer to reconsider our relationship.What's the coolest thing you've made?
One of my favorite pieces is a black bear I made for a solo gallery show in New York. My sister was the model. I was under the gun to finish the piece. The bear was on a tall pedestal looking down, and when I put the final pin in and looked up at her, it was a magical moment—she had a life-like presence beyond any I’d made before. I wasn’t sure I’d even made her. That piece was a turning point in my confidence and my goals as an artist. It sold, before the show even opened, to a great collection in Switzerland.
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To be honest, I am a woman working in the field of contemporary art—museums, galleries, and collectors. This field is exceptionally male-dominated also. When I present my work in a museum or gallery I commonly hear viewers talking about the artist as a "he" even though my name is plastered on the wall. But I don’t mind the element of surprise I see when a collector meets me. It’s just one more layer of the "rethinking" that’s part of appreciating my work.


Jessica Joslin, 43, Chicago, Illinois
Jessica Joslin: I make hybrid species, integrating skulls and bones with metalwork.What's the coolest thing you've made?
I'm a huge David Lynch fan. A few years ago, I was invited to participate in an art exhibition to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Twin Peaks. David Lynch and an extraordinary group of other contemporary artists were represented. For that show, I made a great horned owl named Cooper… It has huge silver wings, with brass feathers and menacing cast metal talons. He's crowned with a silver filigree helmet, wrought in the distinctive shape of the great horned owl's ear tufts, which give it its name. His gaze is intense, and it looks as if he is swooping in to capture his prey… if you are the viewer, that would be you.
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I guess I've been lucky. I do encounter the occasional troll, but for the most part, my interactions have been positive. I'm very grateful for that.


Amber Maykut, 33, Brooklyn, New York
Amber Maykut: I make anthropomorphic taxidermy—particularly mice and butterfly mounts. I use repurposed vintage pieces, roadkill, discarded livestock, nuisance animals, feeder animals, pet trade casualties, and donations.What's the coolest thing you've made?
I made an anthropomorphic taxidermy piece of a ferret wearing a military outfit, complete with combat boots, beret, and weaponry. The ferret was donated to me as a deceased pet. I’m not sure why I, and many others, are obsessed with him. I guess he just has that certain je ne se quoi. He weaseled his way into my heart.What's it like working as a woman in taxidermy?
My work has been called cute, adorable, and whimsical just as much as it’s been called sick, immoral, and wrong. Often people assume that I killed the animals, which is where I believe most of the backlash comes from. For me, I always try to take it with a grain of salt. It’s part of the territory of being a female: getting unsolicited praise and criticism. I think a big part of my personal development over the years has stemmed from learning to be brave enough to do whatever the hell I want because I’ll be criticized either way. At least then I know that one person is happy.
