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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BIG BUGS Adults
Fun and Learning for Adults at BIG BUGS
Many events, seminars, and exhibits at BIG BUGS and Web-of-life Extravaganza are for adults.
March 03, 2008CONTACT:
Debra Strick, Marketing and PR Director
508.877.7630 x3501
For images: Steven Ziglar, Corporate and PR Associate
508-877-7630 x 3503 sziglar@newenglandWILD.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Big Bugs Exhibit Returns to Garden in the Woods
POLLINATORS, PREDATORS, AND PLANTS
FrAMINGHAM, MA –New England Wild Flower Society presents David Rogers’ BIG BUGS exhibit and web-of-life extravaganza July 12 through October 31, 2008 at its 45-acre Garden in the Woods. Encountering 13 giant BIG BUGS, some up to 20 feet long and weighing more than half a ton is a “don’t- miss-experience” for 2008. Learn why the interaction of pollinators and plants is such a “big deal” to life on earth. Discover how we can make our lives better, our food supply stronger and the whole earth GREEN. “New this year is the Daddy Longlegs,” states artist David Rogers. “It is seventeen feet across and nearly twelve feet tall. It is the biggest of the BIG. It represented a challenge in engineering and construction, and I am extremely pleased with the results. I chose Red Cedar for the legs and willow pod wood for the body, not only for durability but also for the aesthetics. It will last a long time.”
Thirteen giant sculptures land in the magnificent Garden in the Woods, featuring 1,500 native plant species and cultivars, including 200 rare and endangered species. The web-of-life extravaganza includes a multitude of bug and plant events and interactive displays, enticing us to go deeply into the lives of the bugs. We are inspired to bring more attention to the surrounding plants, and they attract us just as they attract their pollinators-through lovely scents, beautiful color, and enticing forms.
Even as a kid, David Rogers made BIG art. In 1975, when he was 15 years old, he made his first larger-than-life bug sculptures ― an ant, a dragonfly and a housefly – made of steel. To hone his skills in woodworking, Rogers took on an apprenticeship restoring Victorian houses and building sailboats and cabinetry. He also designed and built rustic furniture, using sticks and branches. In 1994, Rogers created a special four-insect BIG BUGS exhibit for the Dallas Arboretum and soon realized the excitement of insects sculpted on the scale of dinosaurs. This innovative theme led to the “BIG BUGS” exhibit we see today – an exceptional opportunity for public gardens to educate visitors on the role of insects in our world.
Today, David Rogers inhabits a unique niche in garden art. His BIG BUGS sculptures receive great acclaim in public gardens from coast to coast and are now returning by popular demand after a four-year absence to New England’s Wild Flower Society’s Garden in the Woods.
When the BIG BUGS return, they bring a swarm of NEW and special events for both adults and children. What better setting exists than the Garden for a sumptuous picnic and a concert ― with or without giant ANTS? Delight in two evenings of music under the stars and in the Gardens. Listen for “Bug” music on special family evening walks.
New England Wild Flower Society celebrates the return of BIG BUGS with seminars on wildlife gardening in multiple locations. “Gardening with Native Plants to Support the Web of Life,” held at Garden in the Woods, May 23, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., explores a broad palette of eastern native plants and the life they support and rely upon. Entomologist and Wildlife Ecologist Doug Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home, joins us for a closer look at enhancing connections among plants and animals for increasing biodiversity. Included is a walk through Garden in the Woods’ collection of native plants displayed in micro-habitats. For detailed information on and registration for seminars and programs and for directions to the Garden, please visit www.newenglandWILD.org.
Saturday May 3, from 9:30 a.m. to noon in Lincoln, MA, Garden Designer Robin Wilkerson presents landscaping with native plants to create habitats attractive to birds and butterflies over the entire growing season and into the winter. Saturday, June 14, 9:30 a.m. to noon in Middletown, CT, Ecological Gardeners Eleanor Milardo, Peter Picone and Lori Grant review the transformation of a one-acre suburban lot from a lawn-dominated landscape into highly diverse habitats, with more than 120 native plant species.
In June, BIG BUGS comes to WGBH’s reality television show “Design Squad.” See dueling teams of high school students challenged with creating their own BIG BUGS under the guidance of artist David Rogers at Garden in the Woods. Can you pick the winning bug? Both winner and challenger sculptures will be on exhibit at the Garden during the run of the Rogers show through October 31.
And see lots more student art at the BIG BUGS STUDENT ART SHOW. Students of all ages are invited to submit unframed work in all two-dimensional media for live exhibit on October 4 and 5 at Garden in the Woods. Do you want your art to become part of the BIG BUGS website? The Society invites both children and adults to submit digital images of their BIG BUGS inspired artwork for possible exhibition at the BIG BUGS online Community Gallery to be exhibited at www.newenglandWILD.org . For more information on submission, contact Steven Ziglar at sziglar@newenglandWILD.org.
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