Animalistic Art Works Featuring Frankenstein Taxidermy

There's no diplomatic way of putting this, so I'm just going to come right out with it -- German artist Iris Schieferstein likes to work with dead animals. Dogs, cows, horses, pigs, sheep, birds, fish...she happens to be particularly fond of melding several species together and featuring the resulting hybrid creations in her continually well-received exhibitions.

With a seemingly infinite range of artistic subject matter to explore, it does strike one as rather disturbing that Schieferstein continually gravitates toward death, but the creative mind sometimes finds dark territory far more inspiring than butterflies and roses.

Her series of five pieces -- spelling out the words "Life Can Be So Nice" (below) -- might easily be perceived as insightful, sarcastic, somewhat warped or flat-out chugging along the highway to sociopathy...

Her fondness for taxidermy and dissection began years ago in the midst of a thriving art career and she soon found that she could endow the very notion of "death" with an entirely different face...one that concurrently stuns, causes uneasiness and yet captures the public's enduring fascination.

Animal lovers may find her creations very challenging to stomach, but they are admittedly difficult to ignore due to their Frankenstein quality...and presumably, that is part of the artist's grand plan. 

Given the fact that there are infinite types of far more politically correct materials that she could have chosen to feature in her collections, I am hypothesizing that her decision was based on what might stir the most emotional reaction from the public.

It seems as though 99.9% of the information available on Schieferstein's background is published exclusively in German, so I was unable to find out exactly how and where she sources the animals featured in her art pieces - I'd be very curious to learn if the creatures she uses died of natural causes, because then and only then would I be able to justify in my mind that, "well, at least she's recycling them."

Is her distinctive brand of art truly artistic, or is she just exercising a lack of compassion and moral integrity toward formerly living creatures? Could her exploration of "animal carcasses as art" be grouped in the same category as human anatomical exhibits such as Bodies or Body Worlds?

Whatever your personal thoughts, her latest artistic foray into animalistically hoofy footwear is nothing if not eye-opening and foot stomping, not necessarily in that order...or in a good way.

Would you feel comfortable slipping your feet into horse's feet...

or hedgehog bodies? Some might argue that it's not much different from wearing tanned cowskin leather shoes or snakeskin boots.

Somehow, sporting recognizable animal body parts on one's feet is infinitely more jarring because we're reminded that they were once living, breathing creatures -- and in our society, that's not something that we like to think about for very long. 

Do you prefer clinging onto a sanitized view of the role that animals take in the the fashion, art, entertainment and food industries...or are you okee-dokey with the reality of their sacrifice for our benefit, hoofs-fins-tails-and-all?