Urbex – The Art of Urban Exploration

Most of us now live in towns and cities and you might assume that these areas are fully mapped out and known to all. However, some places become unseen or out of bounds and, left to their own devices, become almost geographical blind spots. Join us as some of these off-limits areas are infiltrated – with some startling photographic results.

Image Credit Flickr User xJason.Rogersx

The Strange Life Cycle of the Ladybug

Over at the Ark in Space, there is an excellent article about the strange - no, bizarre - life cycle of the ladybug. What you can see above is what they look like before they become those ravishing little dots of red and black in your garden.

These insects are the favorite of many children but behind the pretty exterior lies an eating machine of devastating proportions which will stop at nothing to get at its next meal and involves itself in some quite ghastly goings on in the shrubbery, even involving intraguild predation (cannibalism, basically).

Altogether it is quite a remarkable life cycle, going on right under our noses.

Take a look


Image Credit Flickr User Giles San Martin

The Embroidered Zoetrope

We have featured any number of zoetropes, those amazing devices that produce the illusion of motion by displaying a sequence of drawings or photographs showing progressive phases of that motion, on Kuriositas.  Now thanks to animator Elliot Schultz we can make good on that omission.  The zoetropes featured were made for Elliot’s degree project at the ANU School of Art in 2013.  I suspect he may have been awarded a high grade.

Wojtek - The Polish Soldier Bear

During the Second World War a bear was adopted by a group of Polish soldiers and quickly became accustomed to the rigors of army life.  He spent years with the Polish Free Army and survived the war yet his ultimate fate was bitter-sweet to say the least.  Here is his story, animated by Marianna Rackin as graduation project from Shenkar College of Engineering and Design.

Yesterday's Tomorrow - A Portland Journey

In “Yesterday’s Tomorrow,” Uncage the Soul Productions brought their cameras to the same position and angles of their favorite Portland historic images. We wondered, what’s changed? What’s remained the same?  This is not quite the ‘then and now’ video you might expect however – what makes it different is the fact that it is done through motion – plus there is a wonderful narration.

The Test of Time

When Time and Space enter the ring for the title of ‘Fourth Dimension’ who can say who is going to win?  This very entertaining animated extended metaphor (I think) is cleverly scripted and put together – not sure if I got all the references but I think I did!

The Test of Time was the graduation thesis film for Ringling College of Art and Design student Michael Ropple.