Thursday, August 28, 2008

A Bug's Life












While looking for something else, I stumbled across the website of
Jennifer Angus, who is an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, in the school of Environment, Textiles, and Design. (Yes, that was my first degree... except it might have been called something else back in the day)
She does these amazing installations that are made of real (though thoroughly dead) insects, mounted on walls and placed in precise patterns. Beautiful, repellent and fascinating at the same time, somehow; a marvel from across a room or inches away...


















These last three photos are from an installation at the
North Dakota Museum of Art.

There is a video that shows some of the process of doing an installation on her website, and also some educational games for kids.
She says that the insects are reused for installations until they cannot be repaired anymore, but I can't imagine that we will ever run out. Of bugs, that is. Insects will be the last living creatures on earth. I missed the Chazen exhibit last year in Madison ... it would have been great to see in person; I have a well-known and cataloged fear of insects coupled with a kind of morbid obsession.

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