In Life (Senior Thesis 2023)

Hanover College Senior Thesis 2023

My senior thesis work emphasizes the absurdity of referring to trophy hunting as a sport. This body of work is comprised of 14 antelope heads, and each head is unique. A long, process-filled semester went into completing this body of work, ranging in around 560 hours over the course of 14 weeks.

Each bust was originally cast from a plaster mold made from an antelope taxidermy form. The two halves were stitched together and then details were added to give each bust its own unique features. The busts were fired using two methods: Raku and Pit firing processes. The antlers were each handcrafted using pantyhose stretched over wire and then hardened with gesso and painted solid colors.

This body of work has been in numerous shows and several pieces of the original 14 have been sold to galleries and private collectors as well as awarded the honor of the M.L. Greiner Student Purchase Award. A piece of this collection lives in Hanover College's permanent collection.