Lightness of Being: the Lepidoptera ProjectThe nature of life is ephemeral, our short seasons on Earth just a blip in time. All of us Earth Creatures are here but for a moment but the variety and complexity of life we are surrounded by is astounding. We are so lucky to be here in this moment. The short summer seasons in the Arctic highlight the intensity of life, as the season is short but productive. It is a time when the natural world explodes with color and activity.
There are at least 43 families of the order of Lepidoptera that occur here in the Far North. Lending their splendor to the mosaic of life during this season. A scanning electron microscope was used to image some of these butterflies and moths from the online Ken Philip Lepidoptera Collection, the largest private Beringian butterfly collection in the world. This investigation was the inspiration for a series of paintings shown here that will be exhibited at the University of Alaska Museum of the North from April-July, 2019. |
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