BY DANIEL MALLETT
The SkullStore takes recycling to a whole new level.
Skulls of all sizes and species cover the walls and fill the shelves. While most are for sale, some belong to the store’s owner who is trying to evolve the small space into a full-blown museum.
The store opened online in 2012. “At that point we cruised the entire country,” said founder Ben Lovatt, “finding trade shows and spots we could sell.”
The SkullStore works with zoos, vets and farms to ensure their products come from reliable, ethical sources.
“It’s all about salvage and recycle,” said Lovatt. “Basically anywhere somethings being wasted we find a way to preserve it.”
“Ethical sourcing is our fundamental concern.” Lovat explained that the store had received a musk ox skull from an Inuit family who had earlier eaten that ox for dinner.
Some of the skulls are thousands, even millions of years old.
“I have fragments of dinosaur skulls,” Lovatt said. “Everything from the world’s first hyena to lions and tigers.”
Aside from skulls there are many taxidermied animals around the store, which are not for sale but are part of the stores transition into a museum.
In that same spirt the store features live animal teaching exhibits, including lizards and a turtle, in the back room of the store.
Fossilized items and wet specimens, like brains and fetuses, are available for sale.
In the near future the store intends to begin offering art reference days. Artists will be invited to bring art supplies to the store and practice drawing skulls, taxidermy animals and other oddities.
“We’re going to be doing a lot of life drawing,” said Lovatt. “Models holding skulls.”
“We’re very much in the artists community. We’re the No.1 skull reference for tattoo artists in Canada.” Lovatt added.
The skulls in the store range from chickens to bears and at any given time the store features more than 100 species.
The SkullStore appeals to artists and collectors alike.
“Some people love skulls as an artifacts and a connection to nature.” Love said.
Arguably the most interesting skulls in the store are also some of the most familiar looking.“Our human skulls are some of our most sought after products. When you look at a skull you see yourself,” Lovatt explained “our lifestyle, our diet is all in our bones you just have to unravel the secrets.”
More information on products is available at www.skullstore.ca.
A 5 per cent discount is available online to Sheridan students using the promotional code Sheridan.
The store is at 1193 Weston Road in Toronto and it is open Saturday and Sunday from noon until 6 p.m. with weekday appointments available by request.
Prices range from $30 for a chicken skull to $5,500 for a full human skeleton.