For the Wild-Hearted Souls

To me, Nature is God. Without it, we simply would not exist. Conserving the world’s natural spaces and the creatures that live there is paramount to the survival of humans as a species, and I have therefore dedicated my life to studying environmentalism in order to help people co-exist more successfully and sustainably with the natural world.

All natural materials I use in my creations are either sourced from roadkill, Fish and Game, secondhand sources such as fellow artists and estate sales, or are antique. In this way, I'm ensuring that no animals were needlessly killed for the sake of the artwork I produce. I fully believe that no part of any creature should go to waste if a purpose can be found for it, but I do NOT support trophy hunters or overseas fur farms by buying 'byproducts' like bones, skulls, or claws directly from them. The only exception I make for this rule is for parts from animals legally culled for population control programs approved by Fish and Wildlife.

As a photographer and wildlife enthusiast, I've been involved with many fantastic organizations such as Images4Life and Wild Tiger, as well as the Sierra Club and many smaller, local groups.
I've been published, interviewed, and even featured on Rainn Wilson (Dwight from “The Office”)'s personal networking website, SoulPancake.com.

I’ve also been blessed with the opportunity to visit many of the world’s most amazing wild places, like Komodo Island, Bali, Lombok, Malaysia, and the Cayman Islands, and have even documented entirely new species previously unknown to science.

Other interests include: Wilderness survival, primitive skills, backpacking, fishing, kayaking, boffing, airsoft, snowboarding, meandering around town, and caving.

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Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor

 

(Source: badgirlgoneevil)

finchfight:

This is a commission I just finished recently for D. Camilo, director of TALLWORKS Collective in LA. They’re a great design studio with some fantastic work, and I had a lot of fun completing this piece. 

Check out TALLWORKS’ site!

columba-livia:

Dioramas from the American Museum of Natural History, NYC.

I’ll be posting a bunch of these over the next few days.

bagley profile by bigbuzzhunt Amazing work from one of my favorite taxidermist/photographers.

bagley profile by bigbuzzhunt

Amazing work from one of my favorite taxidermist/photographers.

Hot damn! 40 point buck.

Hot damn! 40 point buck.

From one of my favorite photographer/hunters on my whole contact list.

From one of my favorite photographer/hunters on my whole contact list.

Originally photographed for my 2008 AP art project, this photo is now on the cover of a novel called “The Picture of Contented New Wealth” by award-winning author Tariq Goddard. The cover was designed by Matt Osman, the guitarist of the English band Suede. I’ve read the book - it was both terrifying and thought-provoking. Exactly the kind of book that I would LOVE to see turned into a movie (because lord knows there are never enough GOOD horror flicks out there)! Anyhow, as I’ve mentioned before in other self-portraits, I simply despise taking them. Self-portraits were once a sign of a daring and talented artist, but when Myspace and Facebook came around, the art was literally slaughtered by narcissistic teenage girls with a point-and-shoot camera and a clean mirror. Thus, I began creating ‘characters’: creatures or people who were not actually me, but who featured aspects of my personality, and/or physical body. This character has no name, but features the very charismatic Mr. Skull, the very first in my personal collection of dead things. Mr. Skull was actually a birthday present to myself, found in the back of a dark and dusty antique store on the verge of closing down. He was tossed into a pile of items that had no other place in the shop, and was covered in dirt and grime. But something about him called out to me, so I bought him for $15.00 and took him home. The first night that I had him, I dreamed that I was walking through a half-flooded forest and there was muddy water all around me. I stopped at an area of high ground overlooking a very soupy lake of silt. As I stood there watchin, the surface of the lake began to bulge and the tine of an antler broke through the grime. Mr. Skull emerged as a full skeleton and walked across the top of the water toward me. I woke up before he got close enough to touch, but made a point of cleaning him the next day! Since then, I’ve had numerous dreams about Mr. Skull, in which he always appears as a skeleton covered in moss and lichen, and in which he always acts as a protector or guide. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a dream about him. But I brought him to college with me and have him sitting atop my bookshelf where he can observe the happening in my room around him.

Originally photographed for my 2008 AP art project, this photo is now on the cover of a novel called “The Picture of Contented New Wealth” by award-winning author Tariq Goddard. The cover was designed by Matt Osman, the guitarist of the English band Suede.

I’ve read the book - it was both terrifying and thought-provoking. Exactly the kind of book that I would LOVE to see turned into a movie (because lord knows there are never enough GOOD horror flicks out there)!

Anyhow, as I’ve mentioned before in other self-portraits, I simply despise taking them. Self-portraits were once a sign of a daring and talented artist, but when Myspace and Facebook came around, the art was literally slaughtered by narcissistic teenage girls with a point-and-shoot camera and a clean mirror. Thus, I began creating ‘characters’: creatures or people who were not actually me, but who featured aspects of my personality, and/or physical body. This character has no name, but features the very charismatic Mr. Skull, the very first in my personal collection of dead things.

Mr. Skull was actually a birthday present to myself, found in the back of a dark and dusty antique store on the verge of closing down. He was tossed into a pile of items that had no other place in the shop, and was covered in dirt and grime. But something about him called out to me, so I bought him for $15.00 and took him home. The first night that I had him, I dreamed that I was walking through a half-flooded forest and there was muddy water all around me. I stopped at an area of high ground overlooking a very soupy lake of silt. As I stood there watchin, the surface of the lake began to bulge and the tine of an antler broke through the grime. Mr. Skull emerged as a full skeleton and walked across the top of the water toward me. I woke up before he got close enough to touch, but made a point of cleaning him the next day!

Since then, I’ve had numerous dreams about Mr. Skull, in which he always appears as a skeleton covered in moss and lichen, and in which he always acts as a protector or guide.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had a dream about him. But I brought him to college with me and have him sitting atop my bookshelf where he can observe the happening in my room around him.