Category Archives: art

The Larvacean Art of Rebecca Hutchinson

Rebecca Hutchinson builds delicate biomorphic forms out of fragile unfired paperclay, hangs them in an art gallery, and then destroys them after the show. Many of them look like ant nest casts or caterpillar cocoons, but what they really remind … Continue reading

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The Invasive Art of Rafael Gómezbarros

Since 2007, sculptor Rafael Gómezbarros has brought his invasive swarm of giant ants to public buildings of his native Columbia. Titled “Casa Tomada”, (Seized House), the ants represent the displacement of peasants due to war and strife. Spreading aggressively over … Continue reading

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Making Iron Gall Ink

After reading my series of holiday posts on galls, my friend Karima excitedly reminded me of one of the earliest forms of gall art: INK! And this month we finally made some! Karima Cammell owns and operates Castle In The … Continue reading

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Tumbled Swarm

A few insect-art gems from my tumblr page this Tuesday:

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The Insect Book of Utamaro

Whilst hunting down information online (for an entirely different post on Japanese insect art), I found several delicately beautiful images by the famed ukiyo-e artist Utamaro, all tantalizingly referred to as pages from a 1788 work entitled “Picture Book of … Continue reading

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Record of the Insect War

Over the holidays lots of friends sent me this glorious link of Brian Chan‘s Insect Origami, beautiful sculptures of multi-legged invertebrates created by folding a single piece of paper. Coincidentally, I watched a documentary with my relatives over the holidays … Continue reading

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Sing a Song for Stenopelmatus

Happy Birthday to me! In celebration, I want to share with you all a very special friend of mine, a beautiful and noble beast who is tragically loathed and feared by nearly everybody I know, even friends who otherwise love … Continue reading

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More Art Inspired By Plant Swellings

A potpourri of works inspired by parasitic plant materials: Of course there is one very common artwork made from oak galls, Ink! Oak gall ink (also called Iron Gall Ink) has been used for centuries as a vital component  to … Continue reading

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Cynipid Celebration!

Arielle Casale has created several hundred tiny ceramic sculptures inspired by wasp galls, and dangled them on long fishing line from above. There they hang like stars, as if the host tree they were embedded in had suddenly gone invisible, … Continue reading

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The Insect Art of Kurimoto Tanshū

The 19th century court physician Kurimoto Tanshu (栗本丹洲) (also known as Kurimoto Masayoshi) was also an accomplished naturalist, and in 1811 compiled the beautiful 3-volume work entitled Senchu-fû, which roughly translates as the Thousand Insects Manuscript. Its pages are packed … Continue reading

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