Watch An Unusual Ensemble of Insects Take Flight in Extreme Slow Motion

   22 Aug 00:00:18  |  ThisIsColossal

In what’s believed to be the first footage of its kind, a stunningly slow-motion video by Dr. Adrian Smith captures a rare group of insects just as they lift off the ground. The NC State assistant professor utilized a black light to attract unusual insects, like a plume moth, eastern firefly, and a rosy maple moth that, as Smith notes, resembles “a flying muppet.” He then recorded the creatures’ flight maneuvers at 3,200 fps to capture their unique wing movements, which he explains during each step. More

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Thick Clusters of Wooden Birdhouses by London Fieldworks Sprawl Across Tree Trunks

   21 Aug 00:00:15  |  ThisIsColossal

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Using Stock Market Charts, Artist Gladys Orteza Transforms Data into Bright Nighttime Landscapes

   21 Aug 00:00:15  |  ThisIsColossal

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Rooted in Chicago?s Culture, Technicolor Paintings by Artist Max Sansing Explore Revelation

   20 Aug 00:00:07  |  ThisIsColossal

Through a series of brightly hued paintings titled Lost & Found, Max Sansing examines the human desire for happiness and peace through a distinct sense of place. Born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, the artist is known for vibrant murals, which you can explore on Instagram, and smaller-scale artworks (shown here) that are rooted in the culture that’s unique to the city.
Each of Sansing’s paintings focus on a single subject who is overlayed with a thick brushstroke or whispy feather. More

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In a Celebratory Series, Photographer Toby Coulson Documents the Eccentric Fashions of Designer Oumou Sy

   20 Aug 00:00:07  |  ThisIsColossal

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Copper Animal Sculptures by Artist Wang Ruilin Are Embedded with Nature?s Sublime Elements

   19 Aug 00:00:16  |  ThisIsColossal

Artist Wang Ruilin (previously) visualizes nature’s interconnectivity by literally imprinting a rocky terrain or ice cap onto the bodies of wild animals. His recent copper-and-paint sculptures include a panda with a black back stripe and limbs that are covered in a mountainous ridge and a white blanket of clouds. Similarly, the waters of the Arctic Circle wrap around a polar bear’s lower back and hind legs, contrasting its otherwise smooth fur. More

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We?re Still Here?Colossal Turns 10!

   19 Aug 00:00:16  |  ThisIsColossal

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Chromatic Black Crows by Artist Kerry James Marshall Consider the Precarity of Race in America

   18 Aug 00:00:15  |  ThisIsColossal

Two new paintings by Kerry James Marshall feature a central crow that looms over a botanical backdrop. One or two birdhouses, which have entrances that are too small for the blackbirds to fit through, are perched on the leafy branches along with more petite species. Part of an ongoing series, the acrylic paintings are based on John James Audubon’s Birds of America, an archetypal text cataloging 435 life-size watercolors of avian creatures. More

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Ride Through a German Village on ?The Flying Train? in Incredibly Clear Footage from 1902

   18 Aug 00:00:15  |  ThisIsColossal

Shot in 1902, “The Flying Train” takes viewers on an uncommonly crisp journey aboard a suspended railcar. Throughout the two-minute video, riders see Wuppertal residents walking across pedestrian bridges and down dirt roadways more than a century ago. The city is known still today for its schwebebahn, which is a style of hanging railway that’s unique to Germany.
MoMA recently pulled the black-and-white footage from its vault and said that curators originally believed it was shot with 70-millimeter film rather than 68. More

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