Butterfly and Moth Wings Art
I discovered a moth in a dark corner of my apartment’s living room. Hoping it was alive, I attempted to revive it but was unsuccessful. While it had passed, the intricate beauty of its wings remained. Inspired by butterfly wings, I created a collection of experimental black and white photographs featuring the delicate moth wing.
What are Butterfly and Moth Wings Made of?
For this project, I used a macro lens to capture extreme close-up shots, revealing the detailed texture of the moth’s wing. Curious about its structure, I quickly learned that butterfly and moth wings are made of tiny, overlapping scales composed of chitin, a natural substance also found in the shells of crustaceans. These scales are modified plate-like satae, or hairs – fascinating to discover!
Black and White Moth Art
Since the moth’s wings were crumbling, I wanted to preserve their beauty through imagery. For one of the photographs, I mirrored a single wing and combined the two frames to create a spread-winged effect, mimicking the symmetry of a butterfly’s wings. While it’s not an exact representation of moth wings, this experimental process reveals some striking patterns. It became an interesting artistic study of symmetry and natural form.
Butterfly Symbolism
Black Butterflies symbolise powerful transformation. Encountering a of black butterfly is often seen as a sign that something in your life needs to be released or reviewed, offering the chance for growth.
Moth Symbolism
“Native American tradition teaches that both butterflies and moths represent the cycle of death and rebirth. These creatures remind us to release ego attachments and make room for the complexity of our true nature.” – Source: Moth Symbolism and Meaning (+Totem, Spirit & Omens)
If you enjoy moths and butterflies as much as I do, and if you do too, you may also like my blog post about butterfly photography studies from the Kuang Si Butterfly Park in Laos.
