Collaboration with IDEA (International Dialogue for Environmental Action) in Azerbaijan

Earlier this year my long-time collaborator taxidermist Jazmine Miles-Long invited me to join her for a project in Baku, Azerbaijan that would involve the complete (re)restoration of 2 taxidermy Caspian tigers, an extinct sub-species. The tigers were created in 1937, and after the collapse of the Soviet Union they were placed in a University next to a window, where they were exposed to direct sunlight for many decades. As a result, the fur faded, and parts like the tails, ears, claws, whiskers and some of the hide were lost.

2 tigers in 12 days

The treatment process was rapid and complex. It included the complete removal of the previous restoration, replacing the ears, eyes, tails and soft tissues with new substrate and fur, a deep clean with solvents and the recolouring of the fur, which was completed using museum-quality and fully reversible methods. This was undertaken over 12 days of intensive work.

For intensive collaborations like these its beneficial to have team members with different skills. Jazmine focused on the scientifically accruate rebuilding of missing elements and I focused on cleaning and recolouring. Together we made it happen so thank you Jazmine for this fun opportunity!