Initially spotted by fellow artist Banksy in 2005, who immediately offered her a pitch at his temporary gallery, Morgan has enjoyed huge success in a relatively short period of time thanks to her innovative reinvention of an age-old Victorian technique. Incidentally, her first client was Vanessa Branson, Richard Branson's sister, who snapped up a white rat curled up in a shallow champagne coupe; selling for ₤2,000, it was clear from the get-go that Morgan's work was going to be hugely popular with prolific collectors, a-list celebrities and anybody else with with a morbid sense of curiosity. Soon after, Morgan sold pieces to the likes of Kate Moss, Sharleen Spiteri, and, unsuprisingly, considering her love of all things dark and twisted, Courtney Love. While the scale and settings of Morgan's work are often unnatural, the animals themselves are never anthropomorphised and always look dead as opposed to the posed 'living' positions favoured by traditional taxidermists. By never photographing her animals in their natural habitats Morgan hopes that we can look at them with fresh eyes; something like a rat, for instance, can be seen as rightfully beautiful instead and disassociated from horror and disease. Despite her shocking technique, Morgan's love of nature is undisputed. An edgy commentary on beauty and mortality, it's not hard to see why Morgan and her unusual medium have sent shockwaves through the industry. Like Marmite, you either love or hate it; when it comes to Miss Morgan and her dark materials, there really is no middle ground.
www.pollymorgan.co.uk / Images: Polly Morgan