Madrid based photographer Miguel Vallinas Prieto began his ‘Second Skins’ series with the intention of ‘investigating the animal in us all’. This whimsical photo series sees various animals dressed in contemporary outfits, posing as typical human models would. The clothes appear to match their personalities, acting as a true second skin.Unsurprisingly, Miguel didn’t actually wrestle a roll-neck onto a swan or sweet-talk a hippopotamus into donning a Barbour. The taxidermied specimens are photographed in various museums and private collections, while each outfit is modelled by volunteers in Miguel’s studio. The two images are then spiced together by the artist. Artist Statement:Working from my home studio located just outside of Madrid, I'm privileged to have the freedom to focus fully on my art. Ever since I discovered photography as a teenager, my aim has been to create fantastic stories. I was lucky, my father built a dark room in our family home and supported my choice to study photography as a discipline. I probably learnt the most from my time working at an advertising agency, where I would prepare the studio for commercial shoots, hire props and build back-drops. All these things were important in helping to master the technical side of my work.In essence, my art explores identity and human nature. I like to play with perception, and I'm inspired by Surrealism and artists such as Dalí, Miró and Magritte. I usually work on a series of images at a time. I'll have the idea for a new collection fully formed in my head and I'll plan it out in detail before I go into the studio. I prefer to use a uniform background as I believe this connects the images and allows a dialogue to play out. I strive to achieve a richness of colour and bring a painterly quality to my photographs.