James Dickinson (taxidermist)

Taxidermy became a widespread art during the 19th century, after advances in the preservation of skins with preparations of arsenic. Its place in museums and private collections, and in zoological research, was well-established by the first half of the 20th century. However by the 1960s there had been a sharp decline in interest "when taxidermy almost disappeared". Dickinson said, "The last great rise in interest was in the 1970s and 1980s ... but all those people who were becoming taxidermists then are ageing now and we're not seeing in increase in young people coming along, saying, I want to be a taxidermist".[6] During his career, Dickinson was "one of the last experts in the field" of conservation-restoration taxidermy.[7]

Dickinson was a chairman of the Guild of Taxidermists, having been a founder member of the Guild in 1976.[4] In 2006, he explained the original aims of the Guild:[8]

Fortunately all ... were in agreement that the most important matter that they needed to address was raising standards. And not just standards of work but standards that affect the way that taxidermy is perceived. In those days many in the conservation world considered taxidermists a serious threat to wildlife.[8]

Dickinson's first employment was as a taxidermist at Bolton Museum, between 1970 and 1971. Following that position, he worked between 1971 and 1972 in City Museum, Sheffield, as a natural history technician.[2]

At the North West Museums Service, England, in 1973 Dickinson became natural history officer,[2] then senior conservator in its natural history department. His work covered the repair of taxidermy in museums across Northern England.[4]

In 1999 Dickinson restored the Warrington seal, "the town's most famous animal". The seal was shot in Paddington Lock on the Mersey near Warrington, in 1908. In that year the 660-kilogram (104-stone) animal was mounted for Warrington Museum & Art Gallery, and its open mouth was "blanked ... off with painted plaster". When Dickinson repaired the mouth, he recreated the teeth with moulds made from a seal skull, and replaced the whiskers with some "rescued from an old tiger".[9]

From 2001, Dickinson's final appointment before he retired from museum service was as conservation officer in the natural sciences department of Lancashire County Museums Service, a department of Lancashire County Council. The department is based at Lancashire Conservation Studios.[4][10] In 2008 he said that he was "one of only five dedicated museum taxidermists in the country and accredited to do work for the National Trust". Describing his work at that time, he said, "I conserve old natural history items such as prehistoric bones and prepare items for public display in Lancashire museums and across the country. I work on a variety of species for taxidermy including birds, rare parrots, insects and other wildlife".[3]

Dickinson was involved in taxidermic repairs during the preparations for the re-opening of Leeds City Museum at the former Leeds Mechanics Institute in 2008. He "produced a number of the new mounts for the Life on Earth gallery",[11]^: 162 including for the Leeds Irish Elk and Armley Hippo skeletons,[3][nb 1] the latter of which was over 100,000 years old.[12][13] Dickinson also repaired the 200-year-old mounted polar bear skin which was donated to the museum by Leeds Philosophical and Literary Society in 1828. He gave it a "cold shower clean-up" outdoors, then retouched its face and "other bare patches", and remounted it. It is one of the museum's "most prized exhibits".[14] Dickinson said, "There is a real sense of achievement when you see items on public display for scientific and educational purposes.[3]

• 
  Warrington seal, conservation
• 
  James Dickinson, with the Leeds Irish Elk, mount
• 
  Leeds polar bear, conservation
• 
  Armley Hippo, mount
• 
  Leeds blue-and-yellow macaw, mount
• 
  Leeds Eurasian otter, mount
• 
  Leeds peregrine falcon, mount
• 
  Leeds red kite, mount

Dickinson has been involved in workshops and lectures during his career. For example, for the Natural Sciences Collections Association (NatSCA) in 2007 at the Lancashire Conservation Studio he demonstrated the preparation of a small mammal study skin, with a discussion of field data, methodology, and advice covering common difficulties.[15] On 1 April 2015 he gave a talk for NatSCA at a session entitled "Understanding Museum Taxidermy: Construction, Care and Commissioning" at the same studio.[16] He gave advice on accessing animal skins to would-be taxidermists: "If you live near the sea, go beachcombing, for example, and always be on the look-out for roadkill. You get used to driving with one eye in the gutter".[17]

On 29 September 2012 Dickinson took part in a BBC Radio 4 show with Claire Balding, called Taxidermists in Boston Spa, West Yorkshire, in the Ramblings series, number 22.[18]

Dickinson retired from the Lancashire County Museum Service and other work between 2012 and 2014. By that time, he had built up 40 years-worth of specialist skills from which his department benefited, and his natural history conservation post was the only such post in existence. Lucie A Graham succeeded him in the post.[19]

Until at least 2003 Dickinson remained in his position as the National Trust taxidermist.[20] In 2014, as a light-hearted reference to past taxidermic fakery, he concocted an Arctic platypus for the performance art company Avanti, who described him as "an internationally renowned taxidermist".[21]