About the artist…

My interest in birds began at an early age, around six or seven. I grew up in Iowa, close to the Minnesota border. We had a 2 acre pond on our farm, and several acres of wildlife habitat, I spent much of my free time hanging out there, just watching and sketching the birds. I began taxidermy in 1983. I studied through a correspondence course supplied by the Northwestern School of Taxidermy in Omaha Nebraska. I did all birds, animals and fish into the early 90’s. I refined my skills to only birds shortly after this time.

I have degrees in the fine arts and graphic design.  I am an avid photographer and continually search for new and unique poses particular to each species. All aspects of bird taxidermy are critical, but anatomy is likely the number one key factor. All birds have their own specific characteristics, attitudes and poses. The form under the skin has to be anatomically correct, sometimes over exaggerated and sometimes under exaggerated, the artist has to know which at the time of creation. I have mounted hundreds and hundreds of most species of birds, I still use reference for all birds, because each piece is a new creation, I don’t believe in assembly line artwork. Each piece is unique. The engineering and structuring of the anatomy has to be a precise and solid foundation, especially when the item will be shipped or transported for long distances.

I’ve worked for several graphic design firms over the years as well as a few higher end taxidermy companies. I incorporate all of my skills into this trade. I am, by nature, very detail oriented, which comes in handy when recreating works of art with our feathered friends.  I continually search for new and or better methods to produce better pieces, not just for an edge over competition, but to keep things new and fresh. I gladly work with people throughout the process of creating your project. Your hunting photos, photos from the web, etc., are all suggested. This is your trophy, I want it to be as close to your expectations as possible.

We also create several different species of protected birds. Many of them don’t have parts readily available, so we sculpt, mold and cast heads, feet, wings, and bodies for most of these. It is a relatively long process as they are 100% actual size and many parts of these birds are done feather by feather . As they become available, they will be posted in the re-creations gallery.