Fauxidermy: The Welsh artist bringing animals and textiles to life

Stephen Price

Working from her small studio along the river Usk, Welsh artist Helly Powell has fast gained a reputation as a master of a very special art form, conjuring realistic wildlife and animal heads to life in some of the most covetable fabrics imaginable.

Admirers of taxidermy can breathe a sigh of relief without the ethical baggage much taxidermy has (save for those animals that may have died from roadkill or otherwise), thanks to Helly at Fauxidermy’s unrivalled talent, which has seen her work feature on television and in the homes of celebrity collectors.

I first discovered Helly’s work at the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol in Abergavenny, back in 2016, and in keeping with my article about the small world power of Wales, discovered her close family ties to my own square mile and relatives from school, chapel and nearby streets.

Helly has combined her deep love for Wales’ landscape and its flora and fauna with a lifelong obsession in textiles, which she expresses in her textile taxidermy sculptures aptly named Fauxidermy.

In her artist statement, she shares: “As Humans we have a deep bond with nature, a bond that heals and enriches the Soul.

“Through my work I hope to inspire this beautiful connection between humanity and wildlife. My Pieces are not only for visual enjoyment but I hope they will inspire people to appreciate the wonder of the natural world around us and to cherish it for future generations.

“I like to think I’m rewilding homes by putting a representation of wildlife and the landscape into our every day lives.”

Helly has a growing number of collections, all of which have been inspired by our National Parks and the Nature and Wildlife within it, and she is also a champion.

Speaking about her Skirrid collection, she shared: “The Skirrid Edition is inspired by my time spent visiting the Skirrid mountain during the challenging times of the winter and spring of 2021.

“In my need to stay connected to the landscape and nature I walked daily to the Skirrid from my home. The journey by foot to the hill from home is along busy country lanes and a series of connecting footpaths through agricultural land.

“The climb up to the mountain wall is through a beautiful deciduous woodland and the higher you climb the more immersive the birdsong becomes, drowning out the distant sounds of Abergavenny. Rewilding yourself with every footstep you take until you reach the mountain wall. Here you will find the gate, a gate through a wall, a gateway to nature and wilderness.

“I love the sound the latch makes as it closes, signifying the leaving of everyday life behind me, escapism and a sanctuary – wildlife’s own little Ark in a sea of agricultural land. Everything beyond this gate and above the mountain wall is in its own little haven, under the management of the National Trust.

“I’ve observed lots of wildlife from hares and rabbits to badgers and foxes, even a glimpse of the elusive roe deer as it delicately picks its way through the dawn lit woodland. As I visited daily I got to observe the changing of the seasons from the bare trees in winter to the eruption of spring building to the crescendo of birdsong and bluebells.”

“The first few visits were very much a march to the top of the hill for the distant views and an amble back home but the more I visited the further down the slopes I ventured until eventually reaching the woodlands, this is where I started a conversation with the place which continued as the season changed.

“During the final few weeks of spring I was drawn to one area in particular. A clearing on the western slopes of the hill, which erupted into a cascade as the bluebells awoke from their winter slumber.”

Helly’s love and knowledge of textiles knows no bounds, with silks and velvets sourced from across the globe, but for me, some of her finest works are made with homegrown fabrics, namely the timeless Welsh blanket cloth of Melin Tregwynt.

The Glyderau and Beddgelert editions in particular utilise multiple Melin Tregwynt cloths, bringing to life hares, otters, deer, boar and more in the most spectacular and moving ways.

In 2017, a collaboration with Helly and Fauxidermy led to the creation of a beautiful new collection, The Beasts of the Mabinogion, breathing life into the native wildlife of an ancient mystical Welsh landscape.

As Helly was using the cloth woven at Melin Tregwynt in the creation of these sculptures, the mill was the natural starting point to exhibiting them in celebration of the national ‘Year Of Legends’.

The exhibition based on Rhiannon’s horse, the boar hunt and the stag hunt, alongside smaller pieces, could be viewed daily at Melin Tregwynt on the Pembrokeshire coast in spring 2017 before it set up camp at Crickhowell’s Oriel CRiC Gallery.

Eifion Griffiths from Melin Tregwynt said at the time: “Helly Powell’s ‘Fauxidermy’ sculptures are simply beautiful to look at. Her work appears so life-like that each animal could have just stepped out of the Welsh landscape.

“This combined with the subtle mix of selected fabrics she has used gives each piece a magical quality. We’re pleased that our fabrics provided inspiration for these majestic creatures, and are excited to be one of the venues for this touring exhibition.”

And since then, a studio move, a growing family, and a need to be at one with the natural world around her, not to mention high demand for her Fauxidermy work, means little rest for this most talented of Welsh makers.

For those who share her passion for wildlife, nature and the beauty and power of textiles, owning a piece or two should be high on one’s Christmas wishlists, but like all good things in life, Helly’s meticulous care and attention spent on each piece can mean fewer releases per year than can meet demand, making them even more prized, covetable and precious.

And while others might be taking inspiration with their own takes on fabric taxidermy, no one, but no one, has the magic touch of Fauxidermy.

Helly’s work flies the flag for Welsh art like no other, combining disciplines in a way only she can – and long may that flag beautifully, movingly fly.

For information on available works, view Fauxidermy’s website, Facebook and Instagram, or view some of Helly’s latest works at Frogmore Street Gallery, Abergavenny.