Working with real insect specimens (mostly farm-raised), Jennifer Angus transformed MadArt Studio into a floor-to-ceiling menagerie of kaleidoscopic patterns. What appeared at first to be familiar wallpaper designs, upon closer look revealed their unexpected medium. Comprised of decorated columns, cabinets of curiosity, and antique furniture, this installation recalled the aesthetic of premodern museum collections. The longer visitors lingered, the more details they were likely to discover.

Super Natural was intended to be a temple to nature. Angus believes that sacred spaces can be comforting, exhilarating, and terrifying all at the same time, and she aimed to create an environment that inspired astonishment, contemplation, learning, and preservation.

Angus is a professor at the University of Wisconsin – Madison’s Department of Design Studies. Her work is inspired by the paradox of both the simultaneous beauty and apprehension that we feel when encountering insects. She aims to create pieces that reinvigorate our child-like wonder and curiosity toward these animals, and spark the imagination regarding our natural world.