Fwd: press release-fall exhibit
Alan Graham
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From: AES <a...@ansp.org>
Date: Fri, Sep 30, 2011 at 11:17 AM
Subject: Re: press release-fall exhibit
To: AES <a...@ansp.org>
Dear Members,
Here’s a press release about a new exhibit opening in late October at
the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia!
BUGS… OUTSIDE THE BOX: DISCOVER THE ART WITHIN THE SCIENCE OPENS OCTOBER 22
New exhibit of giant sculptures also features live bugs!
PHILADELPHIA (September 29, 2011) — Giant, exquisitely detailed insect
sculptures from Italy will make their U.S. debut at the Academy of
Natural Sciences starting Saturday, Oct. 22 in an exhibit that
highlights the beauty and complexity of the often maligned mini-beasts
of nature.
A rarely seen long-armed beetle nearly 10 feet tall. A colorful
butterfly with a five-foot wingspan. A heavily armored stag beetle
with jaws as big as a man’s leg. These amazing creatures are among the
beautiful bugs featured in Bugs… Outside the Box: Discover the Art
Within the Science, an artsy take on the biological architecture of
the most diverse group of organisms on Earth. The exhibit runs through
Monday, Jan. 16, 2012, and is free with museum admission.
In addition to the sculptures, a variety of live insects from the
Academy’s Live Animal Center will be on display, as well as specimens
from the Academy's world-renowned Entomology Collection. Academy
entomologists will be on hand periodically to demonstrate their
curatorial work and to answer visitors’ questions.
The artist’s technique
Created by Lorenzo Possenti of Pisa, Italy, the hand-crafted,
scientifically accurate—except for their size—bug sculptures are meant
to challenge the perception of beauty and celebrate the art of
science. To make his sculptures, Possenti takes great pains to
recreate the insect as it looks in life. He uses a stereomicroscope to
study each insect specimen, paying especially close attention to how
its joints function.
“After modeling each moveable element, I build the molds and pour a
special resin into them,” Possenti explained. The replica is then
finished off, set and painted. “After that I use my special finishing
varnish––the ecofauna finish––which really makes the insects look
real.” Then he adds hairs and bristles.
Dr. Jon Gelhaus, the Academy’s curator of entomology, gets to look at
the beauty and complexity of insects through a microscope all the
time, but laments that most people don’t have that advantage.
“Insects are fantastically constructed, but most people never get to
see and appreciate this unless they are looking through a microscope,”
Gelhaus said. “With this exhibit, the sculptures are up to 200 times
larger than life, allowing visitors to see every beautiful detail and
gain a greater appreciation for this wonderful group of organisms.”
About the artist
Possenti became interested in life and evolution as a child.
“Dinosaurs were one of my first interests,” he said. As a teen he
started studying insects and reading a lot of science fiction novels.
“I was attracted by aliens and not the human way of life.” He put his
interests and imagination together and began creating fantastical
comics featuring humans and super creatures, including giant insects
acting like humans.
Once he began observing insects under a microscope, he discovered
their beauty and diversity––and something else. “I realized I was
finally observing a true alien. All my interests in natural science
and art converged in one.” He wanted other people to appreciate bugs
and started to build large-scale models for institutions in Italy.
Bugs... Outside the Box marks his first showing in America.
Bugs... Outside the Box was created by Outhouse Exhibit Services, Inc.
For more information about the exhibit, visit
www.ansp.org/bugs-outside-the-box
<http://www.ansp.org/bugs-outside-the-box> .
# # #
Carolyn Belardo
Senior Communications Manager
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