Night Visions: The Secret Designs of Moths

Book Description
An astonishing collection of images so vibrant they seem poised to fly off the page. In a place where art, science and technology meet, Joseph Scheer’s images of moths emerge. These ubiquitous creatures are often considered drab-colored poor relations of the "beautiful" butterfly; Scheer’s artwork will forever change that notion. By using a high-resolution scanner, recently developed digital printing technology, and an artist’s sensibility, he brings forth the subtleties and astonishing varieties of color and textures that moths possess. The result is a glittering jewel box of brilliantly colored, intricately formed creatures, each with its own landscape of tiny hairs, kaleidoscopic color, iridescent eyes and antennae as intricate as filigree. Scheer’s moth experiments started out as a fine art print installation to show a range of insects at large scale in a single room, and have now expanded into a biodiversity project with a significant number of specimens. This exquisitely produced volume features one hundred and fifty prints selected from Scheer’s extensive collection, images of such incredible depth and color you’ll want to reach out and touch them. Certainly you’ll never look at a moth the same way again.


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Decked out in their scales, feathers, and furs, and flaunting a palette that ranges from the gentlest green to a screeching-hot orange, the stunning creatures pictured here belie their image as ugly cousins to the butterfly. Using high-resolution scans and an Iris printer, Scheer reveals a breathtaking degree of detail in this diverse but common species. This book presents a selection of 150 spectacular images of moths, labeled simply with their Latin names (more detailed information appears at the end of the book). A professor of print media and founder of the Institute of Electronic Art (Alfred Univ.), Scheer came to his project by accident, but the richness of his images both as art and as natural history is undeniable. Following Scheer's introduction, two brief essays by lepidopterist Marc Epstein (National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Inst.) and media studies professor Johanna Drucker (Univ. of Virginia) explore these diverse strains of examination. Seeing these gorgeous and sometimes monstrous creatures magnified many times over will awaken even the most indifferent viewer to the strikingly intricate designs of the natural world. Highly recommended for art lovers, designers, and lepidopterists alike.-Carolyn Kuebler, "Library Journal" Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.


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