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Art

Tiny Mixed Media Worlds and Creatures Inside Antique Boxes by Allison May Kiphuth

Artist Allison May Kiphuth captures scenes inspired by her surroundings in Maine and along the New Hampshire seacoast by squeezing them into small wooden boxes scarcely a few inches wide. Her mixed media dioramas are constructed from layered ink and watercolor illustrations assembled with pins and string inside antique boxes. The content of each artwork varies from piece to piece from underwater scenes of sea life to magical tiny worlds populated by forest creatures.

Kiphuth recently had a solo show titled Interior at Paxton Gate Curiosities for Kids and will have work on view next month at the What Goes Around show at Nahcotta Gallery in New Hampshire. You can see more of her work at Enormous Tiny Art and on Instagram. (via Colossal Submissions)

 

Photography Science

Macro Photographs of Nature’s Tiniest Architects by Nicky Bay

Nicky Bay (previously here and here) is the master of capturing the exceptionally small, photographing insects typically passed over without acknowledgement or recognition. The Singapore-based photographer stays acutely aware of these tiny creatures, using macro photography to highlight each minuscule detail. While taking a closer look at the micro world found deep in the rainforest, Bay began to notice tiny structures built by his favorite subject. The bug buildings appear manmade—tiny log cabins, gates, tents, and fortresses blocking each insect from the world just beyond their carefully placed twigs and segments of silk.

My favorite microscopic discovery of Bay’s was the Bagworm moth larva’s twisting stack of twigs it builds to protect itself as it grows inside. These stacked structures are almost perfect in their symmetry, each side built with twigs that are equal in length and width. Another favorite is the Arctiinae moth pupa’s cage produced from caterpillar hair and silk, a semi-protective fortress that appears almost like chicken wire.

Ray has collected several other examples of these tiny architects, including a web tower and silk-covered tent which you can see over on his macro photography blog. You can also follow his day-to-day macro photography on Facebook.

Amazing

Watch as the Frozen Surface of Lake Superior Crashes Endlessly Into Mountains of Glasslike Shards

A frozen Lake Superior caused a major ice pile-up on the shores of Duluth, Minnesota on February 13th, its solid surface breaking into layers and layers of icy shards that ranged from 1/4″ to 3″ thick. The strangely satisfying scene was filmed by Dawn LaPointe of Radiant Spirit Gallery who captured the icy waves from several different angles from the lake’s coast. Watching the misty phenomena almost makes you appreciate a long winter… almost. (via Twisted Sifter)

Science

Photos of the First Flower Grown in Space

As part of a new series of experiments aboard the International Space Station to study how plants grow in microgravity, astronauts have planted and cultivated an entire flower garden. This weekend, astronaut Scott Kelly tweeted a signficant step in their research: this firey zinnia bloom, the first flower grown entirely in space. Plants like lettuce have aready been grown and eaten aboard the ISS, but the VEG-01 project is meant to explore how astronauts will eventually grow more complex foods like tomatoes. (via Neatorama)

Art Photography

Serene Photographs of Isolated Landscapes and Lone Animals by Petros Koublis

Subtly influenced by Greek mythology, photographer Petros Koublis waits for scenes to unfold rather than push preconceived concepts onto the natural environments that surround him. This patience gives him access to moments of complete serenity on the outskirts of Athens, snapshots of wheat being pushed softly by the wind and singular animals caught by chance in the center of the frame.

“It’s all a matter of openness, letting everything flow through my soul undisturbed,” Koublis told Colossal about his process. “The olive groves, the pine forests, the sea, or even the peacefully grazing animals in the meadows—they’re all part of a very intimate experience with nature. They are part of us on an emotional level that goes beyond our present state as it reaches back to a forgotten memory of our origin.”

The Greek photographer does not attempt to transform his subjects but allows them to alter his own approach to each image. Beginning his artistic practice originally as a painter, Koublis began to explore the medium of photography in 2000, studying in Athens, Greece. Koublis’s first photobook INLANDS was published early last year by Black Mountain Books. You can keep updated on his photography on his Facebook page here.

 

Photography

Hilarious Winners of the First Annual ‘Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards’

There are quite a few annual wildlife and nature photography awards these days, and it’s nearly impossible to keep up with them all, but if there’s room for just one more distinction, I suppose it’s the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards. Founded this year by wildlife photographer Paul Joynson-Hicks, the competition is open to anyone with outrageous and weird photos of animals doing, well, funny stuff. Collected here are some of the winners and highlights of the 2015 competition, you can see more here.