Walter Potter's Curious World of Taxidermy
Posted on October 9th, 2014 by
Walter Potter was a self-taught taxidermist noted for his anthropomorphic dioramas that became icons of Victorian whimsy. For almost 150 years the stuffed animals were displayed at Potter’s Sussex museum where various creatures were posed in a variety of human situations, including a kitten’s wedding and a primary school class of 50 baby rabbits.
Sadly, enthusiasm for such entertainments waned in the twentieth century leading the museum to closed in the 1970s and his collection was finally dispersed in 2003. However the collection has recently been preserved and celebrated with new photographs of Potter’s most popular works in a book by historian of taxidermy Dr Pat Morris and curator Joanna Ebenstein in Walter Potter’s Curious World of Taxidermy.
The Kittens’ Wedding, c 1890
Rabbits’ Village School, c 1888
Rabbits’ Village School (detail), c 1888
The Kittens’ Tea & Croquet Party