Par for the palette: INSECTS AND ARACHNIDS AS ART MEDIA

Par for the palette: Insects and Arachnids as Art Media The ubiquitous insects have been a cultural inspiration internationally, frequently used as symbols and meta-phors for human existence and experience. Their boundless forms and behaviors make them logical candidates for artistic expression, providing artists with novel media to translate the mood, message and effect of a work. I survey how artists have used actual insects and arachnids in their work, both indirectly (through insects ’ and arachnids ’ bodily secretions and uniquely manufactured products, such as beeswax and caddisfly cases) and di-rectly (using live or dead individuals). From Dubuffet's collage of lepidopteran wings and Yanagi's representa-tive ant nations redistributing flags of sand, to the traditional use of cochineal bug exoskeletons and buprestid beetle elytra for adornment, insects and arachnids, with their accessible, varied forms and cultural significance, have served as art media throughout human history. RÉSUMÉ À part entière sur la palette de l'artiste: les insectes et les araignées comme matériau artistiqu